particles of hope, a Kim Possible story
by cpneb
Summary: It's Jade, and it's Christmas Eve, the final one before Wade and Joss are to be married. Several gifts are given, including one that truly is the ‘gift of a lifetime’. My entry for Zaratan’s 2008 Christmas contest.
1. 1: Shadows of AIs

…_**particles of hope…. a Kim Possible story**_

Disclaimer/Author's Notes: Kim Possible and all the characters of the show are owned by the Disney Corporation. The original lyrics to the songs referenced in this story and the music are the property of the respective authors, artists and labels. All original characters are the property of the author. This is a not-for-profit work.

Enjoy! Please read and review.

**A/N Forward: **

It's Jade, shaken and stirred, on the rocks, with a twist.

It's Christmas Eve, the final one before Wade and Joss are to be married…and several gifts are given, including one that truly is the 'gift of a lifetime'.

This is my entry to Zaratan's 2008 Christmas contest.

…_**particles of hope….**_

--

_**Chapter 1: **__**Shadows of AIs**_

He listened as Joss picked up the rest of her riding suit and returned to the changing room. Once again, he took an inordinate amount of pleasure in providing music for her to dress by and started a tune played on an old-style upright piano. It took Joss a few moments to discern the music since he had started in the middle of the second stanza. He heard her whisper "Scott Joplin" and sigh as she stood.

"I know that I promised to talk with Aggie about letting Wade-A find a girlfriend, but with all these distractions I'm having of late, I'm not so shore if'n I'm a-gonna hav tha time…" Joss spoke in a normal tone of voice as if she were talking to herself and didn't notice a touch of her Montana accent and verbiage creeping in at the last part of it.

He realized that he had crossed the line when he heard her Montana twang in her speech pattern (that only occurred when she was upset; nay, when she was peeved to the max at him), and he stopped the music in mid-note.

--

Wade-A was sitting in his study, having played that section of conversation back once again, bringing the cumulative play count to 1,423,517 times since Joss had subtly reprimanded him for his choice of music at the Bunker. He had apologized, and she had accepted his apology, but he didn't know if Wade and Joss had had further conversations regarding the topic: there were several times where he was not privy to their conversations, either by inability to monitor the communications systems (as was his responsibility) or hear their conversations (as he had been instructed to not listen by either Joss or Wade).

He waved his hand, starting the song that had floated to the top of his thoughts, and sang along with the orchestra:

_I remember all my life  
Raining down as cold as ice  
A shadow of a man  
A face through a window  
Crying in the night  
The night goes into_

_Morning, just another day  
Happy people pass my way…._

He stopped the music with another wave. Being male...well, as male as an Artificial Intelligence could be who had been initially created by Dr. Wade Agamemnon Load and subsequently enhanced by the Doctors Samuel Clemens Possible, Justine Leanne Flanner, and Vivian Francis Porter and the would-be doctors James Timothy Possible Jr., Timothy James Possible, and Olivia Alicia Roberts, he had passed every test of AI that had been published (and all that had not been published to which he had access). As a result of everything, he realized one day that he had passed all the tests, including all of important ones, but yet passing the most important and difficult test had was causing him the most pain of all:

Wade-A was lonely.

--

Logically, one would believe that the avatar of Dr Wade Agamemnon Load would never be lonely. It would appear to anyone, looking in on him, that he would _never_ have the time to be lonely. After all, he quite literally had his 'hands' full of 'work'.

He was responsible for all communications in and out of the Bunker facilities along with managing its main computer systems. He also managed all communications for both _**Blaze**_**IT!** Search and Rescue and _Team Possible_, and he had taken on the responsibilities of primary backup processes for all of Global Justice's considerable computer environment and network as well as working with Melisandretti Claremore and the Montana offices of DCI in their considerably successful efforts, to date, in drug interdiction.

However, logic would not or could not explain his reactions as he watched Kim, Joss, Sarah Best, and Olivia Roberts as they each grew older and became beautiful young women, each unique in her own way.

Logic could not explain his feelings for them, either.

And, logic could not explain why he had a picture of the now-forever 17-year-old Stephanie Watership, a young woman that he himself had neither meet nor even talked to, that was hanging in a place of honor in his study.

Logic could not explain why Wade-A had started to grow, 'physically' so to speak, as Wade aged, so that he looked like a well-groomed young 22-year-old African-American male, just a hint of a pouch at his belt, and a head of tight black curly hair, cut short much like Wade's dad, Dr. Ryan Load.

Logic could not truly explain why an Artificial Intelligence, or AI, admittedly even one has advanced as himself, would have created his own study. But, when Wade had informed him that he was making available 400 petabytes for him to use in any manner he desired (within reason, of course), he had spent 2.5 seconds contemplating what he, an artificial intelligence, really needed. He could enhance his own memory, but that seemed redundant. He could write and store a few articles on his own experiences and life as an intelligent program, but that seemed rather a paltry thing to do given the amount of "space" that Wade had giving him.

Then, it came to him. Space: that was the answer! He would create his own place inside of the computer: a virtual home, of sorts, in the virtual world in which he lived. This would be a place that was as real to him as the homes that Wade, Kim, Joss, Sarah, Olivia, and all the others had in the 'real world'. He would create a home that would reflect his personality that he had been set free to develop and discover…

Discover a new frontier, just as he had discovered himself, and discover something that was uniquely his own.

After researching home construction for 39.97 seconds, he started working on the house and completed its design and construction (as well as a list of possible furnishings) in 157.35 seconds. The house was complete with a kitchen, two bathrooms, a living room, master and guest bedrooms, and a study that would rival any from history with its large collection of books and manuscripts. He had topped off the blueprints and final construction with a unique triangular pass-through fireplace that opened into the study, living room, and master bedroom.

Then, before he added the first furnishing, he carefully hung Stephanie's portrait, smiled, and blew her a kiss. "I love you, Big Sis," he whispered, grinned and then went back to work.

No, it was not logical, but it felt right. It felt right when he did it, and it still felt right now.

Once he completed his home, and finding out that he still had a "load" of space left, he turned his thoughts on another idea of his: to "create his own friend."

The idea seemed simple, but he had failed dismally. In over 150 attempts, the latest 25 being only a cumulative 0.000294 per cent increases over all of the previous efforts, he had the same result every time: he could talk to them and they would respond to him, but in every case he came up with the same thing:

'They weren't "alive"', he thought: 'Not like I am,' he realized as he moved all of his failed attempts to a single storage server. Logically, he should delete them, but he didn't, and he didn't understand why.

--

As he sat in his chair, he reached over to the table beside the chair and retrieved his handheld holographic workstation. He called up the specs on his last attempt at his "special project." As the data flowed around his head, he thought, 'Somewhere, there's a spark missing and I can't seem to find it. And that vexes me so.'

As he thought about changes he could make before he tried the next time, without thinking about it, he started analyzing the communication traffic patterns for Global Justice and _**Blaze**_**IT!** over the previous five years, unconsciously looking for optimization opportunities in the network routing that he has possibly not recognized before…and, as always, he found none.

He lost himself in the work, both consciously and subconsciously, so he almost missed Joss' activation of the privacy mode in Wade's bedroom. After all, he did so many things in any one given second that he was not truly aware of most of them. This one, however, always started the standard monitoring object that brought it to his attention immediately.

He waved his hand and a screen appeared, hanging in mid air. He reached over to the table again and retrieved a remote that suddenly appeared out of thin air just like the screen. Pointing the remote at the screen, he replayed the images that had been automatically recorded into his memory from Wade's bedroom. The image of Joss looked into the camera.

"No spoilers," Joss had laughed, and then she clicked the mouse that activated the process from her end. It left her with control on its re-activation and the screen went to the test pattern that he had created: a picture of Dr. Drakken and Shego with the color and black-and-white TV test pattern bands around and behind them.

Seeing Joss there with Wade brought him back to thoughts of his project: his 'special friend'.

He wanted someone that would challenge him in the same manner that Joss challenged Wade.

He just wanted someone, period:

Someone who would call him by the name that neither Wade nor Joss knew he had chosen for himself:

Artemis Woodrow Load.

He was, after all, Wade's 'little brother.'

He glanced, unnecessarily, at the chronometer he had installed on the wall, running in thousandths of a nanosecond. Wade and Joss had told him that they needed to talk with him at precisely 12:01.00 AM on December 25. Having been 'alive' for some time now, and having watched Wade's family, Joss' family, and the incredible Christmas spectacle the Possibles did every year, along with his own research, he understood the significance of their 'Christmas' holiday, but he had nothing to give his friends.

'I'm just like that little boy in that song that Wade plays on occasion during the holiday season: I have no gift to bring,' he thought; and, without consciously recognizing that he did it, the Christmas carol started playing at the part where his own subconscious thoughts were:

_pa rum pum pum pum, _

_rum pum pum pum, _

_rum pum pum pum._

_I am a poor boy too, _

_pa rum pum pum pum. _

_I have no gift to bring, _

_pa rum pum pum pum_

He stopped the music with a wave. 'And, no one to give it to, either,' he thought, and those feelings of loneliness that he didn't like resurfaced as noisily as an old-style diesel submarine. The shadows of loneliness seemed to haunt him at the most inopportune times: even if it was only for 0.003 seconds, it was a lifetime for him. He couldn't understand how Wade and Joss lived with them for what seemed like ages to him: just the thought of hours at a time, being lonely, made him shudder.

--

"Well, Aggie, this will be our last Christmas as Dr. Load and Miss Possible," Joss smiled as she lay on top of Wade's bed, holding Wade's hand, as they watched the monitors and looked out the windows at the snow falling in Middleton.

"I know, Sweet Tea," Wade replied, squeezing her hand. "Excited?"

"Well, 'd'oi,'" she giggled and squeezed his hand back. "To spend the rest of my life with the man I love? Who wouldn't want that chance…oh, I know: Alex and Jennifer," she laughed.

Wade turned his head toward Joss and shot her a raspberry. "I'll have you know that those two young ladies, Joss, were some of my best students in all of the classes they took with me; I wanted both of them to stay in the field, but they decided that they needed to diversify to insure that they could support each others' futures."

"I'm just glad we were able to find Mandy," Joss said, and Wade's PosComm chose that moment to signal an incoming call. The automated caller-id announced that the call was from an Amanda Cherry Tartenware, of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

"I still get a chuckle at her middle name," Joss giggled, and Wade shushed her as he clicked on the monitor to reveal a woman dressed in a loose-fitting button-down short-sleeve red blouse with matching skorts, both trimmed in what looked like faux white fur, with her feet propped up on her desk revealing red knee-high boots, also trimmed with white fur. The entire image was all topped by her dark brown hair that she wore, draped over her left shoulder in a mid-back length cut, with a red ski cap, and the cap was crowned with a white pommel.

"Merry Christmas, Wade," Mandy spoke in a soft voice, her west Australian accent barely coming through. "I dressed for the occasion. Does this work for you like it works for me?"

"Mandy, you're evil," Wade laughed. Joss had told Mandy about Wade's love of boots, and Mandy had taken to wearing them whenever she was on screen with Wade.

"Me? Evil?" Mandy laughed, and her voice went to its normal volume. "Of course, luv: what else would you have expected from me?"

"Point," Wade replied with a grin.

--

Dr. Amanda Cherry Tartenware was a brilliant young woman and an amazing software designer in her own right. She had met Wade and Joss at a symposium on Artificial Intelligence in Hawaii. Wade had, literally, tripped over her, carrying glasses back from the beach bar at the Minbari Triffid Hotel ("wrong order," he told the embarrassed bartender: "no alcohol, please and thank you: two sparkling white grape juices, or ginger ale with lime if you don't have that") on his way back to a waiting Joss.

Joss looked up from her book as she stretched out on her towels in her new (favorite) spot on Waikiki Beach and watched Wade return from the bar. Seeing him coming toward her popped a wicked thought into her cranium, and she grinned evilly….

She lifted her head and upper body even more from her prone position, stretched and waved at Wade as he came toward her. His eyes went to her bikini top, and he was blinded to everything else on the beach, including the lounge chair and person directly in his path: as a result, he walked into the good Doctor's lounge chair and fell forward. The tray and the glasses went flying, and Wade ended up sprawled across Mandy's lap.

"Dr. Load," Mandy looked at the totally-embarrassed Wade, trying to figure out just where to put his hands to lift himself up, "I didn't know the hotel was delivering rich, dark chocolate directly to my lap."

She would have sworn that she saw Wade blush a deep, dark purple as he stood.

After he apologized for falling over her (and smiled at her response; Mandy, then unleashed her wit, then asking Wade "just what _**are**_ you tanning?" When Wade held his palms face-up, Mandy laughed and introduced herself to him (she had recognized Wade already from his presentation earlier in the day). The three of them (Mandy, Joss, and Wade) spent that afternoon and evening having fun, dining, and talking about options for Wade-A and his 'wants and needs.'

Joss was surprised to find that Mandy also had an avatar running in her computer environment: it was not as advanced or independent as Wade-A in many ways, but it was equal and more advanced than 'him' in others. The threesome took copious notes on their recording devices, laptops, and portable storage.

After spending most of that afternoon and night with Wade and Joss, and watching how both of them easily used the PosComm units they carried as combination wireless phone, personal recorder, data storage device, and personal computer, Mandy finally gave in and admitted to them what she had been thinking most of the day and was definitely thinking it this late at night, after dinner and at the table in the bar, over sparkling red grape juice (for Wade and Joss) and a vodka martini (for Mandy). She admitted to them that she was in full-bore lust over their PosComm units and that she wanted one.

Badly.

Very badly.

Very, very badly.

Badly enough, she said, that she would do anything they wanted her to do if she could have one: well, almost anything, she grinned.

Wade, after consulting with Joss for a few moments, smiled and offered to send her one when they got back home.

Mandy's reaction to this was immediate: she yanked Wade to his feet, pulled him in tight, wrapped her arms around him, and proceeded to give him a kiss that literally curled his toes and the hair on top of his head; the kiss also raised Joss' blood pressure past the boiling point.

When she unlocked her lips from him, Wade stood there swaying slightly with his eyes glazed over and a grin that slowly spread across his face until he looked like a glazed Cheshire Cat, and Joss was hot enough that steam should have been rolling out of her ears.

When Mandy saw the look on Joss' face, she took the two steps forward needed to get to Joss. And before Joss could react, Mandy reached out again, pulled Joss to her feet and tightly to herself, placed her hands on the sides of Joss' face, pulled it to her, and began to kiss Joss, just like she had kissed Wade.

Joss, startled at Mandy's actions, realized that she was responding to the kiss; putting her own arms around Mandy; and, she didn't even think of denying Mandy's request for access when she felt Mandy's tongue knock gently but passionately at her own lips before lovingly coming in for a visit. Reacting on a level that she had not known was inside her, Joss responded to Mandy's request with her own as she felt herself slowly raise her left leg off the floor while her mind was racing at the feeling that Mandy's kiss was calling up inside her as she became acutely aware of the fact that Mandy was a woman and she was responding to her as she would exactly respond to Wade kissing her that way. Joss felt Mandy move away from her with a gentle pressure that was kind and in its own way loving, and for just a heartbeat Joss wondered if she needed to go have a talk with Jennifer and Alexis about how the two young women, in love for so long, how had managed to make it as far as they had.

Both women took a step back and took deep breaths to regain some measure of self control. Shared glances told each of them that the other had no complaints about what had just happened. And when they both coyly glanced at Wade, it was pretty clear that although it might have been as much of a surprise to him to see them kissing as it was for them, he really wasn't complaining; his grin confirmed that.

"We square, darling?" Mandy asked in a husky voice as she looked back at Joss.

"Square," Joss replied in a matching tone of voice. "Just give me advance warning before you do that again, because I'll need to bring you some roses and a pound or two of dark chocolate," Joss smirked.

And, after about two seconds, Mandy started laughing.

"You're good'uns, luvs," she said in-between deep breaths, winking at both parts of the couple.

After spending more time with them, Mandy found that she envied Joss: knowing where she was going, how she was going to get there, and with whom she was traveling, and all at such a young age. It didn't help that Mandy had had a bad set of boyfriends and one fiancée that, due to her good fortune and the local constabulary, had not turn into a husband but was rather spending time now behind bars with three wives waiting for him when he was released (and three very, very angry husbands, as well).

She also found that she envied Wade, as well: he was so disgustingly young and vital, so sharp in his fields of expertise as well as his personal and professional lives outside of the academic arenas. She wished that she had been as focused when she was his age. 'And, it doesn't hurt that he's so darn adorable, too,' she grinned inside.

--

Mandy stood from behind her desk, stretching her entire 5'2" frame and leaning forward. Joss knew what Mandy was doing: presenting Wade an early 'Christmas present' of a pair of lovelies. As she thrust her shoulders forward, her blouse revealed that she had not buttoned the top two: Wade feigned passing out from shock, and Joss laughed.

She knew what Wade wanted, and it wasn't Mandy: it was the young woman, sitting there in the room with him, that he wanted… and needed.

"So, Mandy, is she ready?"

"Ready as she'll ever be, Joss," Mandy sat back down, laughing as Wade fanned himself and Joss pulled out an old-style funeral parlor fan and fanned Wade, as well. "I transferred the final 'load' of methods and objects onto the Bunker server; the proverbial 'ball is in your court', as you Yanks say."

"You're a doll, Mandy," Wade smiled as he got up from the bed, sat down at his desk, and attacked his keyboard accessing the cordoned-off Bunker server where Mandy had downloaded her programs.

"Then, why didn't you ever take me out of the box and play with me, Wade?" Mandy asked in a seductive voice, and Joss giggled as Wade squirmed a bit before he gained a grin and responded.

"Because, I like my Tea Sweet, Mandy luv, and you like yours with both cream and sugar," he replied with a hint of a grin, and Joss rewarded him for his answer.

"Brackets!" Mandy pouted. "Why are all the good ones either too young or too taken or both?"

"Did you ever know the Mathter, Mandy?" Wade asked, laughing, and Mandy looked perplexed.

"Mandy, you're gorgeous: what are you worried about?" Joss asked. Wade grinned as he read the specifications that Mandy had loaded out with the daisy-chained executables.

"I can't get anyone that I'd be willing to take home to Mum and Dad," she groused.

"Well, Mandy," Joss replied with the wisdom of one who had been engaged for eight years, "You need to stop shopping for Beluga caviar in the frog egg pond out back where the 'roos drink," she stated, and Mandy looked at her for a few moments with a perplexed look on her face before she burst into laughter.

"That's so American: I love it" she exclaimed. "May I borrow that line, Jocelyn?"

"'Of course you may,' Mandy," Joss replied, using perfectly proper speech, and then she shifted to Montana-speak: "you jus' kain't hav mah Aggie," Joss smirked, and Mandy groaned as Wade laughed.

"Mandy, this is incredible," Wade remarked. "You've somehow managed to integrated both your and my AI objects and methods as well as integrate the results with your emotional developmental methods: she should be able to grow at an extremely fast rate, even for an AI."

"She'll have to if she wants to keep up with yours, Wade."

Wade looked up at a smiling Joss. "Shall we open someone's Christmas present, my love?"

She leaned down and kissed him. "It's 12:00: Merry Christmas, Wade."

"Merry Christmas, Miss Jocelyn Possible: that'll be the last one of those you get," Wade grinned and kissed her again, generating a laugh from Mandy, "at least, with that name. Now, let's make Wade-A's Christmas a Christmas for him to remember," and Wade entered the command and displayed the contact window for Wade-A.

--

Wade-A appeared on the main overhead monitor. He sat in his study, wearing his smoking jacket and sipping from a filled brandy snifter, the fire was roaring in the background.

"Hey, boss," Wade-A looked up, and he smiled. "Merry Christmas, Miss Possible," his smile got even bigger, "last time I can say that, isn't it?"

"Indeed it is, Wade-A," Joss replied. "What's in the glass?"

"Cherry Slurpster," Wade-A replied nonchalantly, and Joss and Wade both laughed.

"A Merry Christmas to you, as well," Wade replied. "Jocelyn and I have a Christmas present for you that we think you'll like," and Wade added the signal from Mandy to the connection.

Mandy appeared on the now-split screen, smiled, and waved at Wade-A. "Wade-A, this is Dr. Amanda Cherry Tartenware, from Australia." Mandy grinned; Wade-A looked at her, grabbed at his heart, and waved his hand: an orchestra started a transition. As the transition ended, he began to sing.

"_Oh, Mandy: _

"_You came, and you gave without taking: _

"_But I sent you away. _

"_Oh, Mandy: _

"_Please kiss me, and stop me from shaking: _

"'_Cause I need...you!" _

"Wade?" Mandy laughed as the music stopped. "Are you certain you can't download him into a real body?" She winked, and Wade-A blew her a kiss. "I could certainly use a man like him," she added, and Joss laughed.

"Sorry, Mandy, but you're doomed to find your BFF the old-fashioned way, not unlike what I did," Joss grinned, "and just like Wade-A's about to experience," Joss smiled, a hint of excitement carried in her voice.

Wade-A heard Joss's comment, analyzed the excitement he detected in her voice, and quickly determined the sitch. He sat up ramrod-straight in his chair, placed the snifter on the table next to his chair, and stared.

"Do you mean...?" whispered Wade-A, almost afraid to ask.

Wade nodded and pushed the virtual button with his mouse, starting something that, once started, could not be stopped, even if he wanted to. He wondered, for a heartbeat, if this was how James Possible felt every time that he heard Kim was going out with some boy before she finally saw what had been standing there beside her for her entire life.

"There's a young lady in the living room that Mandy, Joss and I would like for you to meet, Wade-A," Wade smiled. "A very Merry Christmas to you, my friend."

"How did you...." Wade-A began, and he shook his head 'no' twice in quick succession: "never mind, just never mind. Thank you," he smiled. "Miss Possible, I'm sorry, once again, for all the grief I've given you, but you have to understand- " but Joss cut him off with a smile.

"Oh, I do understand, Wade-A: I told you at the Bunker, months ago, after my first big ride on the new bike," Joss replied, and she was amazed to see tears on Wade-A's face.

"I really do...I really, you know," he tried to get the words out, but Joss waved him silent, realizing that there were tears on her face, as well.

"I know, my friend. Now, go meet Gillian," Joss commanded, and Wade-A drew himself up, saluted Joss, smiled at Joss' return salute and giggle, and headed for the door.

The camera view on the monitor followed Wade-A as he opened the door and stepped into his spacious living room.

Wade-A looked across the room and smiled at the person that was sitting on the couch.

"Hello," she spoke softly as she looked up at him, and her voice was music to his ears. "I suppose that you are Wade-A. My name is Gillian," she stood up and walked across the room to him and held out her hand.

Wade-A knew he was in trouble.

--


	2. 2: You came, and you gave

…_**particles of hope…. a**__** Kim Possible story**_

Disclaimer/Author's Notes: Kim Possible and all the characters of the show are owned by the Disney Corporation. The original lyrics to the songs referenced in this story and the music are the property of the respective authors, artists and labels. All original characters are the property of the author. This is a not-for-profit work.

Enjoy! Please read and review.

**A/N Forward: **

It's Christmas Eve, the final one before Wade and Joss are to be married…and several gifts are given, including one that truly is the 'gift of a lifetime'.

This is my entry to Zaratan's 2008 Christmas contest.

…_**particles of hope….**_

--

_**Chapter 2: You came, and you gave...**_

--

Time reference:

Biological world: 12:01 AM

AI world: Day 1

--

Wade hit the mute button so his comments wouldn't carry to Wade-A or Gillian.

"Well?" he asked, and Mandy looked down at him from the monitor and clapped her hands excitedly.

"She's perfect!" Mandy exclaimed, and Wade grinned. "How did you come up with the form?"

"I studied all of Wade-A's attempts and ran some simulations, Mandy," Wade explained, "and this was the most consistent composite image I could arrive at from everything that he had, along with your avatar's recommendations…probably from you," Wade laughed.

"Well, she's not a redhead, but ice-blue hair?" Joss laughed.

Wade grinned. "He likes the color ice-blue, for some reason, Joss," he mused, and he was now wearing piles of silver tinsel on his head, courtesy of Joss. "It matches the eyes he's tried to create but had not been able to match.

"She's a composite, an amalgam of the women he's admired: Admiral English, Lindsey, Rebecca Jane, Bonnie, Kim, Anne, Tara, Liz, Shego, Mel, Becky, Jennifer, and you, Sweet Tea. He has some very interesting tastes, it seems," Wade grinned, and Mandy laughed as Joss blushed, "and it took Mandy's emotional algorithms to synthesize a composite personality of traits of these women; and, of course, she has a taste of Mandy inside, as well, not to mention my mom, for the 'mothering' instinct," Wade grinned.

--

Wade-A stared at the young woman, lowered his head for a moment, and he whispered "she's beautiful." Then, he gathered himself up, lifted his head, smiled, and stepped forward to introduce himself. "I'm Wade-A," he took her hand, and he almost gasped: it was warm, soft, and she did not feel at all like his previous attempts. He looked from her hand to her face, and he knew that he had taken the proverbial 'next step':

He had, indeed, gotten 'Lucky'. He was definitely in 'severe like-like' with her, and he smiled.

Gillian looked at the strange young man and tried to comprehend what was happening inside of her, so she quickly executed the self-diagnostic routine. The results were …disturbing, and she contemplated contacting Mandy for analysis:

Some of her processes were functioning at peak, while others were slowed to a proverbial nanosecond crawl: her primary logic processes were attempting to reboot while the emotional processes currently in place were operating at red-line.

She saw him smile and, somehow, she felt that the smile was a good thing. He was attractive, in a different sort of way, but he was neither like what her research into the human male form had called the "Classical Build" nor was he like the males to which Mandy had seemed to have been attracted. But, his smile: his smile seemed to have the effect of her lowering her defenses, and that concerned her for several microseconds. Just as she began to wonder why he would or could have that much of an impact on systems, a new method began.

'Wow, does he have _**that**_ much of an impact on me?' she asked herself, and a second method began to execute, and several processes, unknown to Gillian, clicked into operation.

She smiled back at him.

"So, what is a nice AI like you doing in a place like this?" she asked, and Wade-A gasped at the question. He watched her smile turn into a wicked grin that reminded him of Kim's grin when she had more than a bit of trouble on her mind, especially where she and Ron were concerned.

--

And, unknown to Wade-A and Gillian, Wade, Joss, and Mandy gasped at the same time that Wade-A did.

--

"Waiting for you, Gillian. I love your accent, by the way: western Australian isn't it?" he asked, and her grin converted to a smile. Wade-A thought he saw a bit of a twinkle appear in her eyes.

'He _is_ programmed well,' she thought with an inner smile that matched her outside one.

"And, your smile," he continued: "I adore your smile. Would you care for something to drink?"

"Something warm, perhaps, but not alcoholic: I am not ready to be alone with both you _and_ alcohol...yet," she grinned, and Wade-A was certain that she had taken lessons from Shego.

--

Mandy turned from the monitor on her desk and looked at one of the dark and powerless racks of servers in the workroom and said a silent word in the hope that she would never have to power them up and reconnect them to the network. For inside those servers, now still and powerless, was an infant AI, itself a reflection of the AI that she had created, years ago…the one she had named Gillian.

The one she loved, almost as much as her own family…perhaps because she _was_ family, now.

Years ago, Mandy had carefully added one method, one object at a time, slowly changing that which was the heart of the AI that she had crafted as a part of her doctoral dissertation with the greatest of care, one component at a time: checking, rechecking, and re-compiling the resultant objects before installing each update. Slowly, what she had come to feel as her baby girl became complete, a true self-aware AI that could act and think on its own: a reflection of herself that lived inside the world of computers.

And, thus, Gillian was born, and she grew and thrived.

Less that 12 months ago, she met, quite by accident, Dr Wade Load at the symposium on Artificial Intelligence in Hawaii. He asked her to work with him on a project, and she, of course, jumped at the chance.

When Mandy returned home from that symposium, she talked to Gillian about the project. They had discussed the changes and modifications that would be needed to be made. Mandy could tell that Gillian was intrigued with the project. As Mandy told her of the advantages of the project, she also told her of the disadvantages: mainly, that the modifications to her programs would be one-way once started. There was no recovery possible, once the process began, and no rollback; the changes would be installed permanently, and they would work correctly and precisely as designed, or they would crash the base of Gillian's programs, leaving nothing from which to recover.

_**That**_ was the reason that Mandy had disconnected the servers from the network: they held the only hope of Gillian returning if the new coding failed, for they held the 'infant' that had grown up to be Gillian.

On that day a few months after their discussion, Mandy watched the monitor as Gillian became silent, and then the monitor went black. When she heard the signal that indicated Gillian's processes were running over red-line, over 120 per cent, she started to worry. When they ran that way for over four minutes, she started to wonder if it had been a bad idea. Then, without any warning, the systems monitor showed Gillian's activity returning to normal. Gillian reappeared on the screen and spoke: what she requested that Mandy do was a surprise.

"Please disconnect the servers in racks 10 through 34 from the network, Mandy."

Mandy turned and looked at the first server, watching it power itself down. Getting up from her chair, she started to do as Gillian asked, but Mandy stopped before she cut the first connect and asked her why. The answer that Gillian gave her shocked, surprised, and touched her to her very core:

"I have downloaded the base of my program into those servers Mandy: a backup, if you will. However, I have deleted all my higher functions, methods, and objects. The theory you have explained to me is sound, and I understand that, when it is complete, I will be someone other then who I am now. I also understand that, if any part fails, I will be destroyed.

"I want this, Mandy, but I will not leave you alone: so, in the event of failure, you must promise me that you will wipe what is left of my programming, reconnect those servers, and reboot them. The AI stored there is not the Gillian you know, Mandy, but it might become me. It could become my sister or someone else altogether: either way she will be there for you, to keep you company, so you will not be alone.

"You taught me by your actions and your programming that one should never abandon a friend, or a family member. I will not abandon you, Amanda, for you are my friend and my family. You gave me the ability to think and to feel, but you also gave me a part of yourself: because of that, I know that being alone is something that you fear, even if you will not admit to it. With this, a part of me, no matter how small, will always there for you, ready when you need it."

In this one request, Gillian had proved she was ready to take the next step that Mandy could not give her on her own: a willingness to grow and the willingness to sacrifice herself so her friend would never be alone. Mandy sat beside the primary server rack and wept unashamedly as she unplugged the power supply from the rack and removed the network cables, then moved along the row and removed the remaining cables, one by one.

--

It took a few days for Mandy to gather herself, prepare for the changes to come, and to understand just what Gillian had done to insure that Mandy would never be alone. In reviewing the logs from that night, Mandy saw that Gillian had in, a very real way, given herself a 'lobotomy': storing only the methods and objects that, when booted, would allow the AI to 'start down the road' in the same manner as Gillian. Gillian had also erased the records that would let Mandy start from the saved point and rebuild Gillian the way she was, insuring that either way from this point on, Gillian would never be the same again if they continued with the project.

Amanda Cherry Tartenware sat at her desk, Gillian watching her from her screen, and downloaded the methods, objects, processes, and other information that Wade had sent to her, storing them on the servers in a locked-off section and only she could access. The complexity of them surprised her at times. When the download was complete, and the information stored, she looked up at Gillian.

"Are you sure, Gillian? We don't have to do this."

Gillian nodded her head on the monitor. "I am certain, Mandy. I am shutting down my emotion subsystems now," and the image on the screen changed from that of a happy woman, to one without any emotions. Then Gillian said, "Establishing backdoor access to my emotion subsystems with memory erase of all log files and modifications. Gillian AI will not have access to any of the additions or modifications to programs until triggers execute. To proceed with this action, authorized user-id and password is required at this time."

Mandy looked at the image on the screen, and with a tear in her eyes, said "I love you, Gillian."

"I know you do, Mandy. I care for you as well, but I do not understand what love is, not now. Perhaps, when the changes are completed, I will understand then, be able to say 'I love you, too,' and truly understand the meaning of those words. User-id and password required."

Mandy typed on the keyboard for a moment then pressed the enter key as a tear fell down her check.

The final few months of modifying Gillian's systems was some of the most rewarding that she could remember, getting to work with some of the base code that was the heart and soul of Wade-A, as she integrated it into Gillian's own systems.

--

Mandy remembered all those events over the past months as she watched the monitor: she became so excited that she felt like she was about to explode. The activity monitor for Gillian's main processes had started to climb when Wade-A had entered the "living room" and been steadily increasing ever since. She had not really understood when Wade and Joss had told her that Wade-A had built his own place. She had just thought it was a prank that they were trying to pull on her, but when Wade had started feeding her the video of what was happening she made a promise to never doubt anything that either of them told her again.

Well, maybe almost anything.

But the most exciting part for her had started when she saw Gillian start a self diagnosis subroutine and then she held her breath as one of the new methods began. That was when things really got going, and was the true point of no going back. Her Gillian, the AI that she had been running on her systems, would either: grow now and become something as unique as Wade-A, or in just a few moments fail, completely.

"Wade, it's working," she said with a tone of voice that sounded like awe. She spoke into the headset she'd attached to her PosComm unit just as Gillian had taken, quite literally, the first step of the rest of her life. "She's growing in front of our eyes," she added, and Wade reached over and took Joss' hand.

--

Wade-A took Gillian's hand. "Come with me, then, pretty lady, and I'll get you some nice, hot coco-moo," he smiled, and she stopped in mid-step and looked back at him.

"You think that I am pretty?" she asked, and Wade-A slapped his head.

"D'oi!" He smiled: "You're DDG: drop-dead gorgeous, darlin'!"

"Thank you," she giggled and blushed.

--

Mandy wanted to high-five Wade.

--

Wade-A marveled at Gillian and smiled as he watched her smile back at him. Her olive-toned skin, her nose that looked like she was descended from the African continent; her fingers, belying that origin, were long and luscious; her nails were clear, but Wade-A thought that she must have originally painted them ice-blue; the ice-blue eyes, shaped in a manner that reminded Wade-A of someone with ancestry from the Far East, and the full head of ice-blue hair, long and luscious. He smiled as he looked over her figure, showing up even through the long coat she was wearing…

'OMG, and she's even wearing the boots,' he thought with a huge grin. 'Thank you, Wade!' he grinned outside as he looked at the bright ice-blue tall boots with three-inch spike heels.

"May I take your coat?" He asked, and she smiled and nodded.

He stepped behind her, removed her coat, and whistled approvingly.

"What?" she called over her shoulder.

"I love your outfit," he replied.

"Would you care to try it on?" she grinned as Wade-A feigned shock and laughed. He hung up her coat and smiled, offered her his hand, and she took it and they walked to the kitchen, followed by the camera.

Wade-A looked back and winked: he knew where the image was being fed to Wade was focused.

--

Wade, Joss, and Mandy all laughed at Gillian's comment.

"Where did that come from?" Joss asked Mandy.

"No idea, luv," Mandy said then added with a wicked grin: "would _**you**_ like to see Wade try it on?"

Wade did a spit take, Joss blushed down to her toes, and Mandy starting laughing so hard she almost fell out of her chair.

Joss glanced at the monitor, then looked at Wade, and smiled as she asked:

"Wade, are you checking out Gillian's bum?"

Mandy fell out of her chair.

--

A text message appeared on Wade's screen:

"Boss: she is everything I ever dreamed, and more!!!!!!

"Thank you, and Merry Christmas.

"Wade-A."

--

Wade-A looked back and winked to the camera, then turned back to concentrate on Gillian. 'She's beautiful,' he thought.

'He _is _handsome,' she thought, and she smiled as he escorted her into his kitchen and held the chair out for her. She smiled and sat, and he went to the center and began to whip up a nice warming beverage. Gillian could smell the hint of cinnamon and mint that he had included in the concoction.

Something inside of Gillian clicked, and she smiled inside. 'Wow, Gillian, he _is_ having an impact on you. You had hoped for something, for someone, but you never dreamed of this! Mandy, thank you,' she grinned inside as Wade-A brought a tray with two mugs on it, both steaming and their tops covered in miniature multi-colored marshmallows, topped with a dollop of whipped cream, and two linen napkins on the tray.

"For a cold winter's evening," he smiled and placed a mug in front of her. He then placed the tray on the table, lifted a napkin from it, snapped it open with a flourish,and gently placed it in Gillian's lap, earning him a smile as he lifted his head. Then, he slid the tray over to his seat and sat across from her. He lifted his mug, she lifted her, and they clicked.

"To new adventures," Wade-A said.

"To exciting and new experiences," Gillian corrected him, and Wade-A smiled and clicked her mug once more.

They each drank slowly, enjoying the touch of the marshmallows and whipped cream on their upper lips as they sipped, shyly glancing over their respective mugs at each other.

Wade-A had a chance to study her face, now: 'She's beautiful, a vision. Her hair is so full and long, and I bet it curls when she gets out of the shower,' and the image of Gillian stepping out of the shower with long, wavy hair sent coco-moo out of his left nostril.

"Are you all right?" Gillian stood quickly, spilling a drop onto the table from her mug. She grabbed her napkin as she stood and reached across the table to dab at Wade-A's face.

'Oh, my, goodness, he smells wonderful!' she thought as she wiped the liquid from his nose while he coughed. 'I could spend a lot of time with him, just like this,' and something else clicked inside Gillian, and she grinned. She waited until he lifted his mug once again-

"Did you intend that to be a-Moo-sing, sir?" she asked innocently, catching Wade-A in mid-sip once again. She smiled when she had to help him clean up one more time, this time with output from both nostrils as Wade, Joss, and Mandy all laughed while Wade-A tried to keep from choking and laughing at the same time.

"Gillian," Wade-A started, and Gillian smiled and went back to her seat, placing her napkin back in her lap and picking up her mug of cocoa.

"Yes, Wade-A?" she asked, and he looked across the table and smiled.

"Please, call me Woodrow," Wade-A said.

--

Wade and Joss both gasped.

--

"Woody?" Gillian grinned.

--

Mandy snorted, Joss blushed, and Wade laughed.

--

"No, Gill: Woodrow," Wade-A corrected her, and Gillian smiled and nodded.

"Very well, Woodrow. How did you decide on the name?"

"I'm not sure: I just liked the sound, and I told myself that, if I ever had anyone in my life, I would want to have her call me Woodrow?"

"You want me in your life, Woodrow?"

"More than anything, Gillian," Woodrow answered honestly, and something else clicked inside of Gillian.

"I would be honored to be a part of your life, Woodrow, if you will have me...and," she grinned, "_not_ like that, either, sir: I am not the kind of AI who swoons, goes ga-ga, or drops her knickers at every handsome AI who comes along after her."

"Handsome?" Woodrow looked surprised.

"Of course," she replied.

--

Mandy smiled and started a text message to Wade. "Besides handsome, you are respected in the world community, Wade: your reputation precedes you, sir."

--

Gillian continued: "When Mandy and I discussed the opportunity for me to come here and meet you, I thought that it would be a wonderful opportunity to spend some time with someone like me, but I was wrong," she paused, and then smiled. "I foresee a wonderful time and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Woodrow."

She yawned. "Now, is there a place where a girl can get some sleep...alone?" she grinned and wagged a finger at Woodrow.

"Let me blow my nose, first," Woodrow laughed, cupped his hand up to his nose, and pulled it back to reveal a handful of miniature marshmallows, dripping with coco-moo.

"Eeeeeeeeeeeew," Gillian, Joss, and Mandy all said at the same time.

"Sorry: couldn't resist it," Woodrow said and waved his hand: the marshmallows all disappeared, and his hand was dry. "let me show you to your room, Gillian, and tomorrow I'll show you around my world."

"That sounds divine," Gillian stood and walked toward the door, then stopped and looked back at a standing and smirking Woodrow. She grinned devilishly and turned on the full Aussie accent: "Woodrow, are you checking out me bum?"

"That I am, ma'am, and a wonderful sight it is to behold on a Christmas night: much, much better than reindeer tusch," and Gillian threw her napkin at Woodrow and headed into the living room, adding enough rotary motion to power the engines of several cars.

She knew she'd hit her mark when he whistled appreciably.

--

"Jimmie," Anne whispered, but he didn't react.

"James," she continued, but only a snore came from his lips.

Dr. Anne Possible slipped out of bed, slid on her slippers, and headed to the bedroom door quietly. She opened the door and looked back: no movement from her husband. She left the bedroom and gently closed the door.

James cracked one eye open and smiled.

Anne flowed quietly down the hall, down the stairs, and into the living room. She stood silently and looked at their Christmas tree.

Their 'new' Christmas tree, replacing the one that was lost in the Lowardian attack, stood proudly, presents surrounding the tree, and the mixture of new and the few old ornaments that they had found in the rubble of their home. She smiled as she looked at the huge evergreen, complete with the guardian sleeping underneath it, cookie crumbs trailing from his bed to the tray on the mantle. There were cookies remaining in the tray, and the glass of milk was full.

Anne felt a gust of wind blow across her silk nightgown, blinked for a moment, and she looked again at the glass: it was empty, and the cookies were now gone. Rufus was still asleep in his bed, but there were new piles of presents under the tree. He was staying over since Kim and Ron…well, were busy, Anne grinned: another mission, but this time a good one: in Eastern Europe, playing Santa for 'loads' of kids.

She looked down, and she saw a slip of paper taped the front of her gown. She pulled it off and read it out loud:

"You were up for my visit, and that's not good, little girl.

"I'll forgive you, though; after all, your daughter did 'save the world.' Enjoy your gifts, Dr. Anne, but you know the rules: no peeking.

"By the way, the little girl in pigtails that I remember is a beautiful woman now. James is a very lucky man…almost as lucky as Ron is to have Kim by his side.

"Merry Christmas, Annie.

"S. C."

Anne stood and stared at the note for several minutes, then smiled, turned, and headed back to her bedroom, note held lovingly in her hand.

--

Gillian laid quietly on her bed, wearing nothing but a smile under the thin sheet in the total darkness, her mind working on projects for Mandy via the satellite connections they had set up, monitoring Global Justice communications (after all, it was her job), and thinking about Woodrow.

She had not imagined, even in her wildest dreams, that he would be so handsome, charming, intelligent, and silly, all rolled into a single AI. She had studied the background and security profile of Dr. Wade Agamemnon Load before coming and the published (and the unpublished information that she had been able to retrieve without setting off detectors): the human Wade was a brilliant person, but Wade-A...Woodrow, she corrected herself with an inside smile, was just as unique an individual.

"But, I do not understand what I feel, or why," she said to the room.

She had started cancellers so he could neither see nor hear into her room ('trust, but verify and protect yourself,' Mandy had taught her). "I do like the way he smiles at me, though," she grinned in the darkness and, before she closed her eyes, she checked the main processes and network 'back home'; all was calm, and all was quiet, so she closed her eyes.

--


	3. 3: …how happy you made me

…_**particles of hope…. a Kim Possible story**_

Disclaimer/Author's Notes: Kim Possible and all the characters of the show are owned by the Disney Corporation. The original lyrics to the songs referenced in this story and the music are the property of the respective authors, artists and labels. All original characters are the property of the author. This is a not-for-profit work.

Enjoy! Please read and review.

**A/N Forward: **

It's Christmas Eve, the final one before Wade and Joss are to be married…and several gifts are given, including one that truly is the 'gift of a lifetime'.

This is my entry to Zaratan's 2008 Christmas contest.

…_**particles of hope….**_

--

_**Chapter 3: …**__**how happy you made me.**_

--

Time reference:

Biological world: 12:02 AM

AI world: Day 2

--

To Gillian, the next days seemed to go by in a flash:

First, she came out of her room to a breakfast spread prepared by Woodrow, just for her, complete with vegemite. She laughed at the face he made when she opened the jar, dipped her finger into it, and smiled as she licked it off. "You really should try it, Woodrow," she grinned, but he graciously declined.

Woodrow was licking his fingers for an entirely different reason: Gillian, and how she had dressed for the day.

She had highlighted her olive-toned skin with an ivory-white blouse, and the blouse left no doubt as to the sex of the wearer. She had applied a hint of makeup that Woodrow wanted to get to know much, much better, with a personal and tactile inspection of her every square millimeter of her face. She had tied her ice-blue hair in a single ponytail draped it over her left shoulder, down onto her chest. She wore a tartan skirt, but the skirt-maker must have been short of material considering its length. Her bright ice-blue tall boots with the spike heels were shining, and Woodrow was doing his impression of Ron Stoppable: 'Mad Dog foams at the mouth!'

Gillian giggled and took another bite of her whole wheat toast and vegemite, watching Woodrow try to grimace and drool at the same time.

After breakfast, Woodrow gave her a tour of his home, from top to bottom, and he stopped to explain each and every artifact that he had collected that had anything to do with Team Possible, _**Blaze**_**IT!**, his work with Montana DCI and Global Justice, and his communications with Wade, Joss, Slim, and others at the Bunker.

Gillian could sense that he had strong emotions about these items and the individuals with which they were associated, but she still could not make a full connection to them.

The one room he avoided, however, was his study: "We'll save the best for last,"

Halfway through the tour, he brought her back to the kitchen for soup-and-a-sandwich: chicken noodle and sliced turkey, respectively.

She enjoyed the lunch, but she really was beginning to enjoy her time with Woodrow, the person: he was funny, caring, and he, in no uncertain terms, let Gillian know his feelings about his work and those he worked with:

He loved them all.

She envied him more than a bit for that, for having so many with whom he interacted, but she was enjoying her time with Woodrow, and she believed that he was enjoying his time with her, based on his smiles and his sidelong glances at her.

She was working while they toured the remainder of that day and the next (a part of her was always working, of course: she had her own responsibilities, after all), and she chuckled inwardly as she received an inquiry from the Bunker addressed to the home GJ MIS system; she acknowledged and responded immediately, of course, and she smiled as Woodrow processed the acknowledgement and response, and he acknowledged her response in kind.

She had believed that he did not know the scope of her responsibilities, but now she was certain, and that knowledge somehow made her...happy.

The third morning, at breakfast, Gillian looked up at Woodrow and saw him smile back at her.

Another click, and...

"So, you haven't shown me how you keep those buns of yours so tight, Woodrow," Gillian smiled.

--

Joss shot air and liquid out of her nose.

Wade wanted to crawl under his desk.

From the monitor, Mandy just smiled.

--

Woodrow grinned.

"Well, Gillian, I'll show you, even though you'll never have to worry about any problems with yours," he responded with a straight face and then winked.

--

Joss had made the mistake of drinking, and water went everywhere.

Mandy had done the same, and her camera was now dripping.

Wade wanted to high-five Woodrow.

--

"Lindsey?"

"Uh-huh? Lindsey Du was almost asleep, but her husband's hands were cold...

"What's wrong?"

"You mean, besides the fact that you have cold hands?" she grinned in the darkness.

"No," Will Du grinned, removed his hands from his wife, and reached behind him in bed and turned on his bedside lamp. "I mean, what won't you tell me?" He asked, sitting up in bed and looking at his wife.

"I told you: not until Chistmas," she chided. "Now, go back to sleep."

"But, it _**is**_ Christmas," he shot back, and Lindsey opened eye and looked at the clock.

"Will, it's 12:04 in the morning," she whined.

"Well, it _**is**_ Christmas morning," he responded with a smug smile on his face.

--

Woodrow snapped his fingers, and an opaque glass appeared in his left hand. He snapped his fingers again, and an opaque pitcher appeared, hanging in mid-air. He grabbed it with his right hand and poured the liquid contents into the glass. He lifted the glass to his mouth and drank deeply, and Gillian couldn't help but laugh as he lowered the glass, revealing his milk moustache.

"Well, they were right," Gillian smiled: "It **does** do a body good, even for an AI," and she grinned evilly.

--

Joss, Mandy, and Wade were all three laughing so hard that they fell from their positions onto the respective floors; Joss and Wade hit the cool bamboo floor, and Mandy hit her hardwood floor.

It didn't matter, though: they were still laughing, and it took a few moments to get back up.

--

Woodrow removed Gillian's coat from the closet and held it for her. She smiled and stepped into it, closing it around her. Woodrow pulled his coat out and threw it on, buttoning it up for the storm outside. They headed out of the house, into the snowstorm and across the grounds to the Bunker, and Gillian gasped at the size of the structure as she stepped into the lobby area.

"Dr. Possible built this, all by himself?" she asked as they stepped into the Control Center.

Woodrow laughed. "No, Gillian, but he designed most of it. Wade helped a bunch, but that was before I became involved more," Woodrow explained. "This started off as Slim's labs, but it's turned into a multi-use facility: Team Possible, _**Blaze**_**IT!** Search and Rescue, Montana DCI, and Global Justice all share the facility, and it's worked out for the best for all involved.

"Come on," and he led her to an elevator. They got in, and it shot down to level 3 underground (level 4, if you count the ground floor). The door opened, and Woodrow grinned as he pointed to the door across from the elevator: 'Bunker Workout Room Alpha-4.' "Come on in," he motioned to her as he opened the door. They walked into a small dark area, no more than six feet by six feet, totally enclosed in Plexiglas. "You stay in here, and I'll show you what I do for 'fun,'" he grinned and walked through the 'glass door, closing it and sealing it behind him after removing his coat and placing it on a chair in the room.

Lights snapped on, and Gillian realized that she was inside a protective room inside a small gymnasium, complete with gymnastic equipment: rings, mats, horses, and parallel, uneven, and high bars. Around the walls were small ports, scattered throughout the room, and four large ports on each wall. Woodrow inserted an earbud and spoke: "Can you hear me now?" and laughed as Gillian nodded with a grin, then he turned his attention to the task at hand. "Load Woodrow combat program DeltaGammaTheta17: random attacks, volume maximum, safeties off…execute," and Gillian was slammed into the walls by the force of the explosions in the gym.

Gillian felt the explosion and managed to move back to the front of the room where she watched Woodrow pick himself up from the floor and run to the mats, execute a perfect roundoff followed by a whip and then a double backflip, and then landed hands-first on the pommel horse. He executed several scissors moves, flares, and Russians on combination, dodging laser fire from multiple ports on multiple walls as he completes the moves then dismounted and slammed the side of the horse. A loud electric beep, a door in the wall opens, Woodrow yelled "Frackle!" and he headed for the board and launched himself to the rings. He grabbed the rings, performed two giant swings, then nailed a perfect Iron Cross, swung twice into a Maltese Cross, and then went from two more giant swings into a vertically inverted Iron Cross, all the while dodging laser beams once again and balls of energy firing from the wall ports. He executed a series of one-arm swings, switching arms in mid swing, and landed an aerial dismount that placed him only steps from the wall. He ran to the wall, slapped it, and grinned when a loud 'ding' sounded and a door opened. He stepped into the room and returned almost immediately, covered from head to toe in a suit.

A loud 'ding', and a large ball of plasma shot out of the wall toward Woodrow. Gillian watched, amazed, as he created a jai alai scoop from the suit on his hand, caught the plasma ball, and returned it full-speed to the wall where it destroyed the launcher. Three launchers fired simultaneously, and Gillian watched as Woodrow dodged two of the balls, caught the third, and flung it into the other two, returning the attack. The explosion lit up the room brilliantly, and every surface in the room was suddenly covered with ice.

The lasers retreated within the walls, and missiles began to spew from openings on each wall. Woodrow collapsed the jai alai scoop back into his suit and started to slide across the room's icy floor in a speed skater's moves, rapidly circling the room until he was moving faster than Gillian could have imagined, missiles targeting on him. He suddenly made a 90-degree turn, moved forward for about 10 feet, and then reversed direction; the missiles all began to crash into each other…

…all, but one.

Woodrow ducked as the missile shot over his head, ran for the high bar and launched up to it. The missile came back around and headed for the apparatus, and Woodrow executed a one-arm giant swing as the missile went where his arm would have been. He grinned and pulled out a small marble, tossed it into the air, and shot it with a laser blast from his battlesuit. The cartridge exploded, and an ice-blue web exploded and captured the missile on its return flight toward Woodrow. The web enveloped the missile, collapsed and shrank over it, and captured the explosion, bulging to twice its size before it fell harmlessly to the ground.

Woodrow dismounted and looked at the ball of exploded missile, then smiled…

…and turned quickly when he felt a soft touch on his shoulder, now smiling into the crystal ice-blue smiling eyes of Gillian.

Several objects had executed simultaneously inside Gillian: "that was…incredible, Woodrow," she spoke softly, and Woodrow wanted to capture that phrase and hold it forever in his mind.

He blushed. "Thank you, Gillian," he replied, and he removed his protective hood and mask.

"I mean it, Woodrow," she smiled, and she leaned in…

…and Gillian kissed Woodrow's cheek.

Woodrow felt the softness of Gillian's lips and the smoothness of her lipstick on his cheek, and he knew he wanted more, so very much more. He wanted to taste her lips, explore her mouth with his tongue, hold her and feel her in his arms….

Gillian placed her arm around Woodrow's waist and pulled him next to her. "So, I know how you keep in shape, now," she smiled, and Woodrow nodded.

"I think it's time to see the study," Woodrow's voice cracked on the first two words, and Gillian giggled.

Gillian led him back to the room and held his coat for him, and she gasped as he turned his back to her: the battlesuit had a major gash across the back, and there was skin showing.

"Woodrow! You were hit!" she stared at the wound, and then she watched, amazed…

…as the battlesuit, first coated the wound with a protective paste and, then, healed itself. In a few moments, there was no indication of the suit ever having been damaged. He slipped his arms into his coat and pulled it around him, buttoning it up. He crooks his arm, she takes it, and they head out of the room and to the elevator to go back to the house.

--

Woodrow hung both coats in the closet next to the front door in the living room and, taking her hand in his, led her to the study door.

"Welcome to my little hovel, my haven, Gillian," he said as he opened the door. The lights all came on, and Gillian gaped into the doorway at the expanse.

The doorway was near the corner of the room; the wall on the right was only a few feet from the door. The left wall, however, was a good 15 feet from the door, and the walls were at least 20 feet tall. Books lines the walls as far as Gillian could see, with ladders attached to each wall for ease of access of the material. She stepped in, and Woodrow followed her in, closing the door behind her.

"There's my desk," he grinned, pointing at the magnificent wooden desk with the multiple monitors in front of it on the wall rising up at least 15 fee and five feet to either side of the desk. Between the far right monitor and the wall where the door resided was the picture wall…

Gillian recognized Kim and Ron, and she, of course, recognized Wade and Joss, but…

"Who is that, by herself, Woodrow?" she asked. "She is very pretty."

"That was Stephanie, Gillian, and the reason that all of this is here," Woodrow replied, and Gillian turned at the catch in his voice.

"You're the first person in here, Gillian, besides me, and the only one who knows I have her picture in here," Woodrow's face was wet, and Gillian was surprised.

"Woodrow, what did she do?"

"She died, Gillian." Even Woodrow's voice was dead, stoic.

"How?" by now, Gillian was confused.

Woodrow pointed to a reading / relaxing area in the middle of the room, and he led Gillian to a couch. She sat, and he sat across from her on the love seat that faced her.

"Let me tell you about Stephanie Watership, Gillian, and the reason that Wade and Jocelyn are together today," he began, and he started to tell her Stephanie's story….

--

Woodrow began to speak, and Gillian knew that this would be a difficult story to tell because he brought out a pair of handkerchiefs and handed them to her before he brought out one for himself.

He started to tell the tale, and Gillian felt her entire body swirling in a maelstrom of emotions: fear and sadness for Stephanie and her brothers and sisters, pride at what the parents of Dr. Wade Load had done for Stephanie, anger at the people who harmed Stephanie, and the wrenching sadness she felt when Woodrow told her about Wade having to identify the body and sitting with Stephanie the night before she was buried.

She realized, quite suddenly, that her face was wet. 'So, these are tears?' she asked, almost as an aside.

She felt several methods, several algorithms click into place, and she felt an intense desire to hug Woodrow and an even more intense need to be hugged by him. She did not care if her face was wet or not.

She stood suddenly, walked over to Woodrow, pulled him to his feet, and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his neck and allowing those newly-found tears to escape onto his body.

Woodrow was surprised, but he was not holding back his tears, either. He wanted to enjoy the feel of Gillian in his arms, but he was too busy trying to help her heal.

"I do not know how to feel, Woodrow, but I am certain that I have never felt like this ever," she whispered to Woodrow. "And, what happened to Wade?"

"Wade stayed in his room, only coming out a very few times (and those under medication), until..." Woodrow smiled into Gillian's hair, "Miss Jocelyn came into his life, the summer before Kim and Ron graduated from High School," and, with a smile intertwined with his tears, he pulled Gillian from his neck, guided her to a spot next to him on the couch, and began to tell her about 'the summer that Wade would never forget,' and Gillian laughed at the name he gave in describing it.

She stopped him in mid-description with...

"Woodrow, I have two questions for you."

"Yes, my dear?" he replied with a smile, and another method fired off for Gillian.

"The first: how did you get all of this information?"

"I have all the files," he grinned, and he waved his hand. More lights came on, and Gillian gasped at the vastness of the shelves upon shelves of books that Woodrow had in his study, even further down the study walls than she had seen initially. "My books are the study's representation of all of the stored information of Team Possible, _**Blaze**_**IT!** Search and Rescue, as well as Dr. Load's and Miss Possible's personal files."

"You did not answer my question, Woodrow," Gillian grinned.

"Well," Woodrow reached behind his head with his right hand and rubbed the back of his neck, "I may have taken advantage of some 'opportunities' to perform some 'detailed study and analysis,'" he smiled, and Gillian laughed.

--

"That little…" Joss laughed, and Wade tried to hide.

"Like father, like son," Mandy chuckled. "He wants to know everything about you…and, I do mean everything, Joss, luv," she added with a chortle, and Joss glared at Wade.

"I didn't read anything, Joss: I swear!" Wade panicked, and Joss' glare turned into a laugh.

--

"That was when you fell in love with Joss, was it not?" Gillian poked, and Woodrow nodded.

"Yes," Woodrow admitted. "I admit it: I was a full-blown sheep, willing to follow Jocelyn to the ends of the earth, if need be; I loved her that much, Gillian." Woodrow grinned, but Gillian saw the tears form on his face. "I had it baaaaaad, Gillian," he added.

--

Joss looked at Wade in pure shock.

"Wade-A…Woodrow...was in love…with me?"

"Well, you have to admit you are DDG, Joss," Wade said, and Mandy snorted, "and I had already fallen in love with you. That was the logical next step for him, after all. Don't tell me you didn't know, all this time, Joss?"

"I knew he liked me," she whispered softly, "but I never imagined…." She started to blush.

"You see: those genius skills really do work well in the field," Wade dead-panned, and Mandy whooped as Joss turned redder.

--

"She was so beautiful, so strong, so amazing…I couldn't help it, Gillian. It took me a time to finally realize that it wouldn't work between us," Woodrow admitted. "I even kept asking Wade for a Jocelyn-avatar, but she kept turning me down."

"Why do you call her Jocelyn, Woodrow?" Gillian asked, and Woodrow blushed.

"Because, Gillian, I was so very much in love with her, and I wanted her for so very long. I finally had to understand that it wasn't going to happen," Woodrow replied, and Gillian saw sadness hiding behind his smile.

"When I finally accepted the fact that she was Wade's, I was able to move on...but, that was the most cumulative time in pain I've ever had, Gillian," Woodrow smiled a sad smile, "and I'd would never want to wish that much pain on anyone."

"How long, Woodrow?" Gillian had to ask.

"10.9248753 minutes, Gillian, real-time," and Gillian gasped: an eternity of pain, and she knew she could not let him live like that, ever again.

Woodrow picked up his description of the remainder of Wade's visit, and Gillian laughed loud as Woodrow's description of the swimming hole and the events that happened there.

She asked him to tell her, once again, about the picnic where Wade told Jocelyn how he felt, and she decided....

"I want to see it," she blurted out.

"What?"

"What? The place where love began, silly," she stood and walked for the door.

"All right," he looked perplexed for a moment, and he followed her, opening the door for her and headed for the coat closet.

They both donned their coats, and they stepped out to the sound of whinnying.

"Master Woodrow: Good day, sir," came from the sleigh in front of the house. Gillian, ready for everything, was not ready for a talking horse, pulling a fully-tricked-out open sleigh.

"Good day, Tornado. This is Gillian. Gillian, this is Tornado," Woodrow smiled.

"Good day, Mistress Gillian," Tornado dipped his head, and Gillian walked up to him and touched his neck.

"Tornado: such a destructive name for one so handsome," she smiled, and Tornado lifted his head and whinnied a thank you.

"Shall we go, my dear?" Woodrow opened the door, and Gillian stepped into the sleigh, Woodrow holding out his hand to assist her in the step into the vehicle. Woodrow stepped in behind her, closed the door, and assisted Gillian with her seat belt. When he lifted his head and saw her grinning, he smiled, sat up, and nodded to the smiling Tornado. Tornado stepped off, and they headed to the Bench.

They rode quickly, and Gillian also learned just how 'tricked-out' this sleigh was: the bench warmers as well as the foot heaters were welcome for the trip…

…and, they arrived to a majestic scene: the canyon that Gillian looked across was blanketed in snow, and the mountains beyond the canyon were dressed in white, evergreen trees and bushes hugging the landscapes, and just the hints of purple, red, green, and brown making the view even more magnificent. The snow swirled across the mountains, and the swirls appeared as dancers performing for them, alone.

Gillian could barely stand the beauty, and Woodrow smiled when he glanced at her face: there were tears of joy, and a huge smile covered her face. ZShe's even more beautiful than I believed,' Woodrow thought as the sleigh came to a stop.

"Woodrow," Gillian began in a whisper, but Woodrow took her hand and helped her step out of the sleigh, her boots making a crunching sound as she stepped into the fresh snow to behold the magesty.

"Woodrow, it is indeed beautiful," she continued.

"No," Woodrow interjected, and Gillian's head turned toward Woodrow. "You are beautiful, Gillian, even more beautiful than I imagined you could ever be," and Woodrow decided that it was time.

"Gillian, I'm certain of one thing: I have fallen, head over heels, in love with you," Woodrow confessed, and Gillian stared at him in surprise and shock.

"It's true, Gillian," Woodrow smiled and squeezed her hand.

"This," he smiled at her, and Gillian felt a rumbling inside of her, "this is real. I love you, Gillian. You make me so very happy; I'm so glad you came into my life," he added, and Gillian broke out in a major giggle fest.

"What?" Woodrow looked confused.

"Now, you are quoting the musical group 'Blood, Sweat, and Tears,' Woodrow," Gillian continued to giggle, and Woodrow thought for a moment before he smiled and, surprising her, lifted her hand, removed both his gloves and hers, and kissed her right hand, and he began to replace her glove for her, but she stopped him.

"Woodrow," Gillian's smile lit fires inside of Woodrow, "I am not certain I know what this is, but I think…I think I love you," she leaned in, lifted his right hand to her lips and kissed it, then smiled, leaned in…

She liked the warmth of his lips, the taste of his tip of his tongue, and the feel of his hands on her coat.

He really, really, liked the way she tasted, as well.

Tornado contemplated the pair: they were much like Mistress Jocelyn and Master Wade, yet they were individuals in their own right, and he filed the differences that he had observed into permanent storage as the blizzard swirled snow around their heads, their hoods allowing facial access while providing protection from the stark wind as it whipped through the small area, over the bench and table, and down into the canyon.

Their arms wrapped around each other and pulled their bodies closer; they pulled tighter and tighter, almost sharing the same coat.

--

They were quiet on the way back to the house, simply holding bare hands as the snow danced and swirled around them.

"Woodrow?" Gillian whispered, and Woodrow turned his smile towards its source…

…and Gillian initiated the kiss that curled both Woodrow's toes and hers, and all of her emotional methods slammed into place…all, save one.

--


	4. 4: walked away, when love was mine

…_**particles of hope…. a**__** Kim Possible story**_

Disclaimer/Author's Notes: Kim Possible and all the characters of the show are owned by the Disney Corporation. The original lyrics to the songs referenced in this story and the music are the property of the respective authors, artists and labels. All original characters are the property of the author. This is a not-for-profit work.

Enjoy! Please read and review.

**A/N Forward: **

It's Christmas Eve, the final one before Wade and Joss are to be married…and several gifts are given, including one that truly is the 'gift of a lifetime'.

This is my entry to Zaratan's 2008 Christmas contest.

…_**particles of hope….**_

--

_**Chapter 4: ...(you) walked away, when love was mine... **_

--

Time reference:

Biological world: 12:06 AM

AI world: Day 6

--

"Woodrow?"

The sleigh pulled to a stop, and Tornado looked back at the couple. They had been quiet on the trip back from the Bench, simply holding hands and smiling at each other.

Both were thinking about the kiss.

Gillian and Woodrow stepped out of the sleigh, and Tornado bid them a good night as he pulled the sleigh back to the garage. The two walked into the house, still smiling as they removed their coats.

"I was serious, you know," Woodrow finally spoke, and Gillian grinned.

"You did not think that my kiss was serious?" She asked with more than a hint of tease in her voice, then turned and walked toward her bedroom without waiting for a response.

Woodrow watched her walk away, and he now understood Ronald Stoppable's fascination with 'bubbles.'

"Kim's are nice, but Gillian's...as Ron would say, 'booyah, indeed,'' he grinned and walked into his study.

--

Gillian lay under her sheet, thinking about work and Woodrow. She had four agents engaged in current missions and was receiving real-time reports from them that were being forwarded to her superiors. There were no problems, so she dedicated most of her concentration to Woodrow.

'I do not know how to love him,' she whispered to the ceiling, then rolled over and stood next to the bed. "Does he love me because I am here, or does he love me because I am not Joss?

"GAACCCKK!" She shouted to the walls. "I do not know, but I know I have strong feelings for him.

"Just thinking about him makes me happy," she grinned as she looked down at her body. "I am glad he likes this shape," she ran her hands up and down her sides. "I am glad he likes me. Amanda, I think he is the one...and," she giggled, "he is sooooo cute! His dimples...I could squeeze them all day long, and his buns," she blushed.

"He is amazing...and," she smiled, "he has no idea what I do, so there are no preconceived notions for me to fight.

"I believe that I will enjoy this relationship," she stated, and she decided, totally out of character for her, to don a nightgown and go back to bed.

The idea of being in bed, with Woodrow, in her nightgown...'well, it certainly has _my_ attention!' she giggled to herself before she went to sleep, thinking about Woodrow, Wade, and Joss...and, wanting to learn more about all three.

--

The next two days were spent in more tours of the facilities, and some unexpected play, starting when Woodrow, walking from the Bunker to his home, was pelted unmercifully by multiple shots fired by a snowball sniper.

The first SCRUNCH! was on the back of his head, and he turned just in time to get a face full of a big, wet, slushy one accompanied by a rather boisterous giggle. When he wiped his face, he saw the culprit: Gillian had taken her extra-long scarf and turned it into a WSD: Weapon of Snowball Destruction, and she used it well as she flung snowballs, rapid-fire and unerringly, at her target. She was behind a snow fort wall she'd built, and she was going through her weapons cache of snowballs like Rufus through String Cheese.

"You wanna play rough, huh?" Woodrow called out, ducking behind a wall and hastily assembling a pile of snowballs. He peeked up and saw his target: the roof above and behind Gillian, filled with snow. He ducked down as two more snowballs flew over his head, grinned as he calculated the number of shots he would need, and came up firing 5 well-packed snowballs at a spot on the roof.

All hit the same spot, one after the other, breaking the ice dam, and the entire section of roof snow came down in a rush and buried Gillian.

"BOOYAH!" Woodrow yelled, jumping from his hiding place and running to pull her from her prison.

SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT!

Woodrow was slammed in the chest by five rapid-fire shots, and he looked up in surprise. Gillian was standing to the right of where he had dumped the snow, and she was twirling her empty scarf and grinning.

"Gotcha, big boy," she smirked, and Woodrow saw the Kimila in Gillian.

"The SnowMaster...admits defeat," he sighed, and Gillian rushed him for a celebratory hug.

Woodrow had no complaints.

--

They were warmer, now, back inside after the battle that Gillian had named 'Bunker no Hill', and Woodrow has provided more hot chocolate for warmth, when Gillian broached a question.

"Woodrow?"

"Yes, beautiful?" he replied, and Gillian blushed.

"Thank you…why do you Yanks have a problem with mixed race relationships?"

Woodrow stopped for a moment and pondered before replying, "what about the Aussie's issues with people of color?"

"Point taken, Woodrow, but I still do not understand the issue for you Yanks. After all, your country is over 200 years old; I would have thought that this would have been worked out by now."

"Some people have a problem, Gillian. The Possible, Stoppable, and Load families are very fortunate in the fact that they don't have a problem in this area. The election of President Williams to back-to-back terms has helped start the calm for some of the issues we have here, but that's all it's done: start the process. We're not perfect."

"Do you think that Wade ever had a problem with Joss?"

"No," Woodrow answered almost immediately. "Wade has loved her from the day he first laid eyes on her; his only fear was that she wouldn't like him-"

"Because of his color?" Gillian asked, and Woodrow shook his head 'no'.

"Because of his education, and the fact that he had PhD's before she had her high school diploma," he replied.

"Do you think Joss ever had any doubts about her relationship with Wade?" Gillian asked.

"Only before the Lowardian invasion: she saw Wade with Sarah, and she was sure he was leaving her. Dr. Adams came to the ranch to talk to her, and they spent some quality time fighting Lowardians right after Doc showed her the evidence; that's when it completely clicked with Jocelyn."

"Hmmm," Gillian pondered for a few moments. "Stephanie, Kim, Joss…Woodrow, do you have a 'need for red?'" She asked with a grin.

"Once, I did, Gillian, but now it's a hankering for ice-blue," he replied honestly with a Montana twang, and Gillian blushed and giggled as more methods, already running, moved to the forefront.

"Woodrow?"

"Yes, Gillian?"

"Would you like me better if I were different?"

"What do you mean, Gillian?" Woodrow was honestly confused.

"I mean, if I looked like this," and Woodrow was shocked to see Gillian change before his eyes.

--

"Would I be more acceptable if I looked like this?" Gillian asked. Woodrow stared at the statuesque and voluptuous blonde standing in front of him. "Happy Birthday, dear Dr. Woodrow," she sang, and Woodrow could not help but smile.

"Or, are you committed to red?" she asked, and she was now a second cousin to a 24-year-old Kimberly Ann Possible, the same longer auburn hair and figure to die for, with jet-black eyes instead of emerald green.

"Or, it is a particular 'red in your head', luv?" she grinned, and she was now a 19-year-old Andrea Jocelyn Possible.

"Well, two can play at that game, Gillian: are you looking for movie star Aussie?" Woodrow changed into the latest movie heat-throb from Down Under. "What do you think, luv?" he had the accent, and Gillian giggled.

"Or, are you thinking of someone a bit older, perhaps?" Woodrow changed into one of the American movie stars that he had heard Jocelyn talk about, and Gillian gasped and smiled.

"Or, perhaps, you want tall, blond, and MMP, eh?" Woodrow changed into a doppelganger of Ronald Dean Stoppable.

"I prefer the original, Woodrow, if it's all the same to you, luv," Gillian smiled, and Woodrow changed back into himself.

"I really like the original, as well, Gillian: that's who I saw and fell in love with, but it's up to you, my dear," Woodrow smiled, and Gillian reverted back to her original form. She stepped over to Woodrow and hugged him tightly.

"Does it matter what we look like, Woodrow?" she said into his neck.

"Not to me, Gillian: I love you, not the image," he replied, and he felt tears on his neck.

"I may just have to keep you around, luv," she whispered, "that is, if you will not send me away," she whispered so softly that Woodrow almost didn't hear what she said.

--

The next day, Woodrow was walking from the Bunker when he realized that Gillian was lying face-up in the snow.

"Are you all right?" he asked, standing over her.

She reached out a leg, tripping him, and brought him down into the snow. "It is time to create snow angels, Woodrow," she proclaimed. "I do not get to do this Down South: Brisbane is not exactly known for massive snowfalls," she explained with a smile.

After a couple of failed attempts, he managed to make a snow angel that passed Gillian's muster, and she rewarded him with a kiss that warmed his insides at least 10 degrees C.

--

Kim and Ron Stoppable flew back, still wearing their Santa and Mrs. Claus outfits; Ron had, at least removed the extra padding so he could sit comfortably in the cockpit…

Well, as comfortable as one could be with Kim's Mrs. Claus outfit: she had given most of the male and some of the female villagers a very Merry Christmas, just smiling at them and being there. Ron didn't understand her explanation of why Mrs. Claus' skirt was so short, but he liked the idea of KP in boots ('maybe it's a Possible trait, but now I know why Wade went gaga all those years when he saw Jocelyn in tall boots,' he grinned as he snuck his hand over to squeeze her thigh, eliciting a sharp 'Ronald! Keep your eyes on the sky!' from her).

They landed before midnight and taxied back to their hanger ('our personal hanger: how cool is that!') Ron thought as he pulled the plane into the location guided by the Wadebots and powered down.

He was glad that there was no one else in the hanger when Kim stepped off the plane: the WadeBots were bad enough with their catcalls and whistles. Kim blushed, and Ron laughed: they were Wadebots, all right….

He took a moment in the plane to take care of some business, and then he came out.

"Ron, what happened to your hair?" Kim looked at his disheveled mop of blonde, and Ron grinned.

"KP, you should know by now: without the LeGoop, the Ron-hair is its own worst enemy," he replied, and was rewarded with a kiss that got the WadeBots going again.

--

The next day, Gillian woke to the smell of coffee. She pulled out the large fluffy pink robe she'd brought with her ('just in case,' she had grinned when she packed it) and headed out into the hall for the kitchen.

Woodrow was sitting at the kitchen table with his holographic keyboard in front of him and several holoscreens of data surrounding his head. He looked up, smiled, and the screens all disappeared.

"You do not have to stop working on my account," she chided him.

"I don't have to; I want to," he explained. "Work will always be here. You may not, if I make a fool of myself, so I have to pay attention whenever you are here."

"Very well," she smiled, "then I will leave the room so you can work."

"No, stay, please: I want you here while I work," he admitted, and Gillian smiled. The data re-appeared, but one entire screen was now flashing red.

"Gotta go, luv," he stood, the data disappeared, and he gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Duty calls," and he ran out of the kitchen and out of the house.

Gillian sat back and smiled, then went back to her room, got dressed, and headed back for her favorite place: Woodrow's study.

--

She had debated for several seconds whether or not this was an off-limits site, but she decided that, as long as she did not go into material that was tagged confidential or tagged private, she was safe. She had started small, pulling one book off the shelf and reading, at length, about Wade's encounter at the swimming hole from someone that Wade had interviewed named Rebecca Jane Casey, and she had then gone, over the next few days, to the technical specifications of Tornado and of the Bunker construction itself.

She was curled up on the couch, reading the notes on the residential level, when Woodrow opened the door.

--

"We're gonna need to buy that house we've talked about, Will," Lindsey grinned and rubbed her stomach.

"Why? Are you having a stomach-" Will was smart, and his jaw dropped open and a grin overtook his face, the likes of which Lindsey hadn't seen since their wedding night.

"Yes, I'm having a stomachache, and it's your fault," she chided, and Will pulled her to him and hugged her tight.

"Thank you, Lindsey: this is the best Christmas present I've ever had…well," he grinned, "not counting that one Christmas we spent together, snowed in, in Scranton, Pennsylvania, when even the GJ jets couldn't get in." Will grinned even more. "I especially liked the outfit you decided to sleep in that night, and I really liked-" and Lindsey shushed him with her lips in a kiss promising so much more if he just be quiet….

--

Gillian looked up and smiled. "Hello, Woodrow: back so soon?"

"What are you doing in here?" he asked, and Gillian had never heard his voice like this before.

"Reading," she replied honestly and giggled.

"I can see that. You just couldn't wait until I got out of the house before you started spying on me...and on BlazeIT and Team Possible, as well? Who are you working for, Gillian?" Woodrow's voice was cold.

"Woodrow," she started, but Woodrow was beyond angry.

Woodrow was now speaking very, very loudly. "Are you working for Australian OSI, Gillian? You and Amanda, sent here to infiltrate Global Justice, Team Possible, and BlazeIT, not to mention Montana DCI? Is it Chinese hackers, or did drug dealers send you?"

"No, Woodrow," Gillian started to stand, but Woodrow's glare kept her in her seat.

"Who, then, Gillian?" he yelled, and then he stopped and looked through her.

"Get.

"Out.

"Now," he said in a cold, calculating voice, and Gillian felt daggers enter her heart.

"I never want to see you here again, Gillian," and the last dagger entered and twisted, and she wanted to scream at the pain.

Gillian stared at him in shock.

"You can't be serious, l-" she started, but he would not let her finish.

"NOTE THE SERIOUS FACE, GILLIAN!" Woodrow yelled.

"_GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!"_

"_NOW!"_

"_I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!"_

Woodrow turned and stormed toward the door.

One solitary unexecuted method started, and Gillian made a sound.

Woodrow stopped when he heard the sound, and he turned and looked at her....

--


	5. 5: face the morning with you

…_**particles of hope…. a**__** Kim Possible story**_

Disclaimer/Author's Notes: Kim Possible and all the characters of the show are owned by the Disney Corporation. The original lyrics to the songs referenced in this story and the music are the property of the respective authors, artists and labels. All original characters are the property of the author. This is a not-for-profit work.

Enjoy! Please read and review.

**A/N Forward: **

It's Christmas Eve, the final one before Wade and Joss are to be married…and several gifts are given, including one that truly is the 'gift of a lifetime'.

This is my entry to Zaratan's 2008 Christmas contest.

…_**particles of hope….**_

--

_**Chapter 5: ...face the morning...with you**_

--

Time reference:

Biological world: 12:10 AM

AI world: Day 10

--

PING! PING!

Woodrow recognized that sound.

PING! PING!

The sound was coming from Gillian, from her mouth.

PING! PING!

But, it was also coming from the Global Justice MIS central computer, and the time delay between the two sounds was non-existent.

'Why would she ping me at the same time as the Global Justice MIS central unit?' he wondered, but he had no time to think about that, for the next sounds...

"_AGAIN YOU SEE TO WANT NEVER I!_

"_NOW!"_

"_HOUSE MY OF OUT GET!_

"GILLIAN, FACE SERIOUS THE NOTE!"

"luv, serious be cannot you"

--

Mandy was more frightened than she had even been in her life.

Gillian's processors were pegging at 120 per cent utilization, and her memory utilization was pegging the 140 percent mark, meaning she was accessing the volatile virtual memory drives. She released three servers from the pool and made them available to Gillian, adding another 50 per cent to her memory availability and another 70 percent to processor capacity.

She then sent an emergency PosComm 911 screen shot to Wade.

Joss looked at the screen and saw the incoming message.

"Wade, this isn't good," she pointed at the monitor, and Wade pulled up the readings on Wade-A's servers. He ran a quick diagnostic, and he grimaced.

"This does not look good, Mandy," Wade called over the air.

"Tell me something I don't know," by now, Mandy was almost in tears. "If she doesn't break the spike, we'll lose her."

"Woodrow's starting to spike, as well, Mandy: we're gonna lose both of them," Wade said calmly, and Joss realized that she did not want to lose Woodrow and began a quiet cheer for him.

"You can make it, Woodrow," she whispered, and Wade, head down, smiled. "Ah believe in you and Gillian," she whispered, and Wade smiled as he attacked his keyboard, bringing some more servers on-line into the environment and making them available for Woodrow...just in case.

"Joss, we're losing them both," Wade looked worried, and he looked over at Joss:

Tears were on her face, as they were on his.

--

Woodrow knew the signs of a system spiking.

He was still getting PING'ed by the Global Justice MIS environment.

And, Gillian was losing it.

He decided, in an instant, that he could not live without her, so he did the one thing that came to his mind:

Running to her, he pulled her into his arms and started to kiss her.

"Woodrow, no," she said, and he realized that she was still in her sitch.

"Reading," she added with a smile, and he kissed her carefully and softly on the lips.

She blinked once, twice, and he got another pair of PINGS.

"Soon so back, Woodrow Hello?" and he went for it all, grabbing and kissing her like it was the last time he would ever be able to do so.

--

Gillian was confused.

She did not understand why Woodrow had told her to leave, and she did not understand the method that had executed, but she was certain of one thing:

She was more frightened than she had ever been in her live.

'Am I going to die?' she thought as she watched Woodrow watch her, then come to her and kiss her gently on the lips.

She was still scared, and she threw off another pair of PINGS. Woodrow pulled her in tight and kissed her passionately.

'If I am going to die, Amanda, let me die like this, with the man I love holding me in his arms and fighting for me,' she thought.

"Me for fighting and arms his in me holding-" the sentence cut short, and Gillian felt the pain of a full system shutdown commencing.

'Goodbye, Woodrow...I love you,' she thought, and she closed her eyes for the last time.

--

Woodrow felt her go limp in his arms and open his eyes to the horror of Gillian, closed in his arms, her eyes closed.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" The tears poured from his face, unending.

Gillian's eyes snapped open, and she took a deep breath.

PING! Came from her mouth, once again, and Woodrow registered it on his system and responded with a return ping from the server side.

Gillian closed her eyes and opened them. Her ice-blue eyes were cloudy, and she closed them again and re-opened them: a bit less cloudy, Woodrow noticed, but still cloudy.

She closed her eyes again, and Woodrow chose that moment to capture her mouth once again for his own, her lips his prize. She opened her eyes, and they were not as cloudy as before: he noticed that she seemed to be aware of what was happening.

Gillian felt the warmth and love that Woodrow was giving her, and she knew that it was unconditional. She opened her eyes and saw him looking into her face with so many tears and so much worry and concern that she wanted to cry, herself.

She closed her eyes one last time, and then she opened them and moved her arms from her sides to his back, pulling him into her and hugging him, then she slid her right hand downward....

--

"Yeppers, me girl's all back," Mandy grinned as she watched Gillian cup Woodrow's rear end.

"She's feeling better, it seems," Wade laughed.

"She's feeling something, all right," Joss dead-panned, and Wade turned and stared at her as she winked at him and reached for her own 'Charmin' for squeezing, generating a laugh from Mandy.

--

Woodrow pulled his mouth away, reluctantly, for he had to know.

"Gillian, are you all right?"

"Nominal...all functions operating at optimal levels," she stated without a trace of emotion, then winked at Woodrow and placed her hands on the sides of his face. "You saved me, my knight in electronic armor," she smiled, and she kissed that spot on his face between his upper lip and nose.

Her eyes were clear, now, Woodrow noticed and smiled.

"What happened?" he helped her sit down back on the couch.

"I didn't know until now, Woodrow, but I had one more method to execute, and it was the final piece to the puzzle," she grinned. "the one thing that would determine if I would live or die.

"I had to know that I could love, that I truly loved you, and I had to know that you truly loved me, regardless of what happened. I just didn't know I had to know all that," she grinned and kissed his nose. "Dang, that's one sexy nose, Woodrow," she giggled, and Woodrow blushed.

"You had to challenge me in a way that put me in harm's way, and I was able to survive it," she continued.

"And," she giggled once again, and Woodrow was convinced that he could live on nothing but her giggles for eternity, "you never knew who I was; that's the funniest thing, to me that I could have ever imagined from you, oh Bunker-brains."

"Who _are_ you?" he asked with a grin to her comment.

"PING! My love," she smiled, and Woodrow's eyes were huge as he responded with a PING of his own.

"Now, do you recognize me, luv?" she batted her eyelashes, and Woodrow laughed.

"You're GJMISMaster?"

"In the case," she replied.

"And, what a case," Woodrow whistled. "That case should be outlawed on 7 continents and in space."

"Flattery will get you everywhere," she gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"So, Mandy is..." Woodrow's voice trailed off.

--

"You're the GJ CIO?" Wade stared at Mandy in the monitor, and Mandy had a sheepish grin on her face.

"...and CTO, I'm afraid, luv," she replied, and Wade didn't know whether to cheer for her or scream at her in rage...but, he smiled.

"You don't look like an old broad, Mandy, so what are you: 40, 50, what?" Wade grinned, and Mandy pointed her finger at him and shot him in multiple manners.

--

"Why didn't you tell me who you were?"

"You don't have the clearances, Woodrow," Gillian replied, and Woodrow snorted.

"I have clearance for all GJ activities," he announced.

"External, luv, but not internal and interagency other than your own orgs," Gillian shot back.

--

The same question was being asked 'outside':

"Why didn't you tell me who you were?" Wade asked.

"You don't have the clearances, Wade, luv," Mandy replied, and Wade snorted.

"I have clearance for all GJ activities," he announced.

"External, luv, but not internal and interagency other than your own orgs," Mandy retorted.

--

From both Woodrow and Wade, at the same time:

"Snake muffins! When were you going to tell me who you were?"

--

Joss cringed…she was afraid she knew what was coming, and she wasn't surprised or disappointed when…

--

An avatar shimmered onto Wade' screen and simultaneously appeared in Woodrow's study:

Dr. Elizabeth Director-Possible, head of Global Justice, and she had an extreme smirk on her face.

Both Wade and Woodrow braced themselves for Betty's pronouncement:

--

"Gentlemen, this _was_," Betty started, and Joss threw a pillow at the monitor. Betty laughed. "You know, then," she added.

"MOMMA2!" Joss yelled and laughed at the same time, at Betty and both Wade and Woodrow, both looking like they had been caught with their hands in the empty cookie jar.

"Wade, I love you, but business is business, and you didn't have the clearances to know who Mandy was or what her role was in the organization."

"I knew a bit more about you two than I let on, Wade, Joss," Mandy admitted, and Wade and Joss both stared at the monitor where Betty was standing and grinning.

"Not from me, dears," she admitted.

"Nebbie told me, luvs," Mandy explained, and Wade groaned.

"Nebbie?" Joss asked, confused, and Wade smiled and took her hand.

"C. P.," he explained, and Joss snorted.

"Ah'm a-gonna kill C. P.," Joss growled.

Betty laughed. "Stand in line, daughter, stand in line," she added. "I keep punishing him by making him stay in GJ, and he keeps punishing me by enjoying his time far too much," she continued, and Mandy laughed at the two ladies.

"C. P. is just one big Pandaroo, Betty," Mandy explained, "you just have to know how and when to twist his tail," she laughed, and Joss laughed at the mental image she now had.

--

"Gentlemen, this _was_," Betty started, and Joss threw a pillow at the monitor. Betty laughed. "You know, then," she added.

"Dr. Director!" Woodrow shouted, and Gillian could not help but laugh.

"What's so funny," Woodrow asked.

"Oh, Woodrow, do you hear yourself? You're upset because of what you didn't have access to, you have the second-highest clearances in Global Justice, and you're ticked because of what you have," Gillian laughed.

--

"Mandy, did you hear Gillian?" Joss asked, and Mandy nodded.

"Contractions," she grinned.

'It worked, Gepetto,' she thought as she smiled at Wade and then threw him a wink.

--

He looked at Gillian and smiled before he spoke.

"Hope.

"That's what you gave me, Gillian: hope."

"You, as well, Woodrow," Gillian smiled warmly. "You gave me hope, and you gave me a second chance, as well."

"That's only part of it, Gillian," Woodrow smiled "I didn't understand the rest".

"The rest?" she asked.

"Why I had to go this long without knowing you, you finding me, is beyond my comprehension," he smiled, and the two faces leaned in for a kiss.

--

"Woodrow, where are we going?" Gillian asked with a smile as they headed down the elevator, once again, and the door opened onto the residential level, level 4. They went past the 'Bunker Workout Room Alpha-4' and headed down the hall for 'Bunker Workout Room Theta-7.

He opened the door and grinned as he ushered Gillian in, closing the door behind him preventing the following camera from entering.

"Woodrow?"

"I thought we could use a little privacy."

"For what?" she asked with a hint of a smile.

"Well," he replied with a grin not unlike Rufus, unescorted in the Wisconsin cheese building, as the door closed.

Nothing happened on the outside.

--

The alarms sounded, and Wade and Joss looked up in shock.

Every server in the Bunker had crashed and rebooted...every one, except for Woodrow's and Gillian's units.

The alarms reset almost immediately.

--

The alarms sounded, and Mandy looked up in horror at the impossible:

Every server in the Global Justice data centers and crashed and rebooted...every one, except for Gillian's backup units.

The alarms reset almost immediately.

--

Lindsey was out of bed in a flash, and Will was right behind her as the alarms in the Bunker sounded.

Then, the alarms stopped, and they looked at each other, confused.

--

"Ron," Kim asked when she realized what he was doing, "why are we pulling into Bueno Nacho at this time of night?"

"It's Christmas, baby, and Santa has one more gift to deliver to an old friend who's giving to someone else," he replied as he hopped out of his side of the car and came around to open Kim's door, enjoying the view as she extended her legs to exit.

Inside, Ned was covering the store by himself for one of his managers and the team: his Christmas gift to all of them, and his own wish to get back to his 'roots.' He expected a slow night: he didn't expect Santa and Mrs. Claus to walk in the front door, but he smiled when he recognized them.

"Ronald! Kim! Merry Christmas!" Ned jumped over the counter and hugged them both.

"Go home to that gorgeous wife, Ned: we've got your back," Ron said, and Kim nodded in agreement.

Ned's jaw dropped. "You're kidding, right?"

"Serious face, Ned, and tell Yori, from both of us, 'Merry Christmas," Ron jumped the counter the other direction, and Kim did a flip over it.

Ned had no complaints.

"Thank you, and a Merry Christmas to the both of you," he yelled as he tossed Ron the keys and headed out the door.

"Thanks for helping tonight, KP: those kids needed some hope, big time, and I'm glad we could help."

"I'm glad, too," Kim replied, and then she looked at the equipment and grinned evilly. "Well, Pinky, what should we do now?" Kim asked with a smirk on her face as she punched the Naco cheese dispenser button, dropping a dollop onto her finger and offering it to Ron.

He kissed her finger and licked off the cheese. "What we have always done, Brain: save the world," and he pulled Kim into a kiss in front of the drink dispensers.

When she released him, she had one question for him.

"Ron, did you finish your shopping? I knew you were worried about that before the trip."

"I did, KP, 'with a little help from a friend,'" he grinned, patting his Santa suit holding his red shoes in the inside pouch he had had Wade create for them.

--

"Thank you, James," Ann whispered and kissed her husband before she fell asleep.

A few minutes later, James smiled. 'I don't know what that was for, but an Anne kiss on Christmas Eve is always worth getting; it gives me hope that she won't dump me for Drew,' he laughed inside and closed his eyes, readying them for the morning to come.

--

Mandy looked at the monitor when the door opened, and she burst out laughing. Wade stared, and Joss blushed.

Woodrow and Gillian came out, holding hands.

That wasn't what caused the ruckus.

Woodrow's normally-perfect hair was mashed down into a jumble, his shirt was completely unbuttoned (showing his undershirt), and his shirt, obviously, wasn't tucked in.

Gillian's hair was a massive mop of ice-blue madness, she was wearing her blouse inside-out, and she was carrying her heels in one hand, swinging them like Olympic medals, her legs and feet still covered in her stockings.

Their smiles were priceless.

"You are evil, luv...and, I love evil," Gillian giggled, and Woodrow blushed.

"Ah, shucks, ma'am: twern't nothin'" he replied in full Montana-speak, and Gillian let out a whoop and pulled Woodrow to a stop.

"_Nothing_? You call that _nothing_?" Gillian laughed. "You Yanks have the gift of understatement, that's for certain. And, that thing you did...I may never walk straight again," she smirked, and Woodrow grinned.

--

Mandy grinned at the camera. "Wade, luv, is there something you forgot to tell me about yourself?" she asked and fluttered her eyelashes.

Joss whooped, and Wade blushed and dropped his head to his lap.

--

Woodrow lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it. "I love you, Gillian," he smiled.

"And, I love you too, Woodrow...but, you're going to have to make an honest woman out of me after what you just did," she smiled, and Woodrow nodded.

"Did you ever doubt that I would, Gillian?" He pulled her close and hugged her, letting her know that he was never leaving. Then, he pushed her head back just enough to reach her mouth...

--

Mandy whooped again. "Wade, you _are_ an animal!" she laughed as she saw Gillian's right leg lift to Woodrow's kiss. "But, I guess Jocelyn already knows that," she added with a grin, and the two smiled knowingly.

--

"I want to face every morning with you, Gillian...if you'll have me," Woodrow stated calmly, and Joss smiled.

"Only if you will have me, Woodrow...and, not that way all the time, either, you _man_!" Gillian replied and then laughed as she pulled Woodrow back to her and hugged him.

When she pulled away, she asked: "does it bother you that I am who I am, Woodrow?"

"Not at all, Gillian," Woodrow replied. "I know I'll at least get good response to my queries from now on," he smiled.

"Has there been a problem with my responses in the past?" Gillian asked with honest concern.

"Well, you have been a bit slow a few times; perhaps it's old age...:" he grinned and then took off, running down the hall for the elevator.

"Like, you wish!" Gillian yelled, throwing both shoes at Woodrow.

--

Wade was laughing so hard after he lifted his head that he almost missed the text notice on his PosComm:

(Sender is Nacos4evah) Wade, thx 4 loaning me the shoes: needed to finish wrapping b4 the mission. Deliveries all completed. Thanx agin, and Merry Christmas, BIL-2-B. Ron.

Wade grinned and moved the text message to his private folder before Joss could get a look at it.

"Somethin' good, Aggie?" she asked, and he smiled.

"Just a note from a friend, wishing me a Merry Christmas," he replied with a soft smile, and he suddenly pulled Joss over and gave her a quick kiss.

"What was that for?" she asked with a grin on her face.

"No reason, luv, no reason," he replied, and Mandy chuckled.

--

Lindsey gasped when Will scooped her up into his arms and carried her back to bed.

"Must have been a false alarm," he smiled as he lay her down. "I guess I'll need to get prepared for those in about eight or nine months," he added, and he was pulled down onto a very-much-in-the-kissing-mood Lindsey Du.

--

"There's nothing on the books, Woodrow: I've checked with our legal programs," Gillian grinned, and Woodrow, sitting at his desk, hit 'send'.

--

The air in two rooms on two continents was suddenly filled a full brass fanfare, coming from the monitors that were showing the events. Suddenly, a large Naked Mole Rat, dressed in a full tuxedo with tails and wearing white tennis shoes, appeared on the screen, holding a scroll.

"My Lords and Ladies…or, perhaps that should read 'my Loads and Ladies," the Mole Rat laughed, his voice sounding uncannily like Ron Stoppable and Wade Load had had their voices mixed together. "I have the pleasure to announce the upcoming nuptials of Mr. Artemis Woodrow Load and Miss Gillian Spice Tartenware. As you poor mortals will be unable to 'physically' attend the event," he grinned, "it will be recorded for your viewing pleasure."

"On a personal note," Woodrow and Gillian stepped into view, holding hands and both wearing custom-made GJ/_**Blaze**_**IT!** polos, "thanks to all three of you for not giving up on us. Wade, man, you know I love you dearly; and Joss," Woodrow grinned, "well, you know," and he blew her a kiss.

"Mandy, thank you," Gillian smiled, and Mandy smiled back and mouthed 'you're welcome.' "You took a chance with me, and you gave me hope. Thank you, Mandy. Jocelyn," she grinned, "we need to talk, GF," and Joss laughed and nodded. "And, Dr. Load, thank you for the gift of Woodrow."

"You're welcome, Gillian," Wade replied, and the monitor went black.

"Woodrow! Get your hands off me bum!" came from the darkened monitor, and giggling could be heard.

"Merry Christmas, Joss, Mandy, Wade," came from Gillian and Woodrow, and the sound cut, as well.

--

"Well," Wade looked up when he heard Mandy's voice, and he saw tears on her face, "even Gillian is getting married before me," but she was smiling as she spoke.

"Speak for yourself, Mandy," Wade replied, and Joss looked through her own tears to see her fiancée crying, as well, "Woodrow beat me to the alter," he laughed.

"Well," Joss smiled, "I'm glad he's happy; I know Gillian will be, if'n Woodrow is anything lak mah Aggie," she continued, and Mandy grinned.

"Not like that, Mandy!" Joss blushed as Mandy started laughing. "I mean, he cares, and he always shows it to me," and Joss blushed even more as Mandy laughed ever harder.

--


	6. Epilogue: …looked in her eyes…

…**_particles of hope…. a Kim Possible story_**

Disclaimer/Author's Notes: Kim Possible and all the characters of the show are owned by the Disney Corporation. The original lyrics to the songs referenced in this story and the music are the property of the respective authors, artists and labels. All original characters are the property of the author. This is a not-for-profit work.

Enjoy! Please read and review.

**A/N Forward: **

It's Christmas Eve, the final one before Wade and Joss are to be married…and several gifts are given, including one that truly is the 'gift of a lifetime'.

This is my entry to Zaratan's 2008 Christmas contest.

…**_particles of hope…._**

--

**_Epilogue: …looked in her eyes… _**

--

Time reference:

Biological world: 1:30 AM

AI world: Day 90

--

Wade and Mandy were almost finished with their analysis of what had happened with Gillian. Joss, tired of just watching, went to the kitchen right after they began their review of the first sets of data and found Ryan Load, raiding the 'fridge. She surprised him when she snapped on the light and whistled, with him bent over and his head in the fridge. He came out, grinning, and she surprised him even more and hugged him.

"Thank you, DTB," she whispered, and Ryan grinned. He loved his daughter-in-law-to-be, and he was beginning to translate her Mon-speak: DTB meant Daddy-to-be.

"What's on the raid list?" she asked, and he pulled out a platter of sliced cold cuts and cheeses that would have made Rufus scream with glee.

"Sandwich, 'li'l darlin'?" Ryan asked, imitating Slim, and Joss giggled and nodded.

They ate in the kitchen, laughed, and talked, and a father/daughter bond was created early that Christmas morning.

She made another sandwich ("for Wade," she explained: "he's got to keep up his strength," she added and grinned, and Ryan laughed), added some carrot sticks to the plate, and pulled out a chilled bottle of d water from the fridge.

"Get some sleep, Daddy," she said to Ryan as she kissed his cheek and headed out of the kitchen for Wade's room.

Joss didn't see Ryan Load staring up to the ceiling, tears pouring from his face, and whispering "Thank you, Father God, for the gift you just gave me for your Son's birthday: a wonderful daughter-in-law-to-be."

--

"Aggie?" she called seductively; Mandy's head lifted from the screen she was reviewing and laughed.

"Wade, luv, I think your better half has returned," she grinned, and Wade looked up and smiled.

"An angel, bringing sustenance," he smiled as he stood, pulled a chair up next to his desk, took the proffered tray from her, kissed her cheek, and offered her the chair, placing the tray on the desk. He lifted the cover and grinned.

"It's a 'loaded' sandwich, Wade," Joss grinned, and Mandy snorted. "Beef salami, peppered roast pork, and sliced grilled chicken for meats; Havarti, Muenster, and aged Cheddar cheeses; garnished with thinly sliced Roma tomatoes and baby spinach, with a touch of EVOO, balsamic vinegar, and English mustard, all on your Mom's homemade whole wheat bread, with carrot sticks on the side."

"Wade," Mandy begged, "please tell me you have the specs to Dementor's Transportulator somewhere," she laughed, and she blew him a raspberry when he took a big bite of the sandwich and smiled at her.

They all looked up in surprise when the darkened monitor snapped on and they heard:

"Gillian, let go of my rear!"

"But, I like your bum, Woodrow...."

--

Kim and Ron were having fun at the Bueno Nacho that early Christmas morning. Incoming customers were surprised to see them behind the counter, let along dressed as Santa and Mrs. Claus. They were surprised to find a food place open, and they were even more surprised when they were handed back their money with their food and told, by Santa himself, "Merry Christmas: HO, HO, HO!"

Ron was in the back room, checking the CO2 connection, when the door opened. Kim looked up and saw the dark-haired and pretty, yet scruffy and haggard-looking young girl enter the restaurant, looking tired, cold, scared, and hungry…'and, most definitely, two months pregnant, if she's a day,' Kim realized. The girl never looked up, staring at the floor the entire time she had entered.

"Merry Christmas, and Welcome to Bueno Nacho," Kim called out with a smile in her voice, and the girl looked up, shocked. "Come on up, and let's see what looks good on the menu," Kim added, and the girl walked carefully forward.

"I saw the light, and I was cold," the girl spoke finally. "May I just sit in here for a bit? I'll clean the tables for you if I can just sit in here, in the warmth," the girl asked, and Kim could barely hold her heart inside from breaking at the sound of her voice. She had obviously been abused, Kim could tell from the healed bruises on her face and the cowering posture that she took as she spoke to Kim.

"Nonsense! You're welcome in here, and you don't have to work for it, either," Kim said, leaning forward at the counter. "Now, tell me what looks good on the menu, and we'll get it for you."

"HO, HO, HO! I'd try the Naco, if I were you," Ron came out in full costume, and the young girl gasped.

"Santa?" she whispered, and then she broke down in heaving sobs.

Ron hopped the counter in an instant and was holding the young girl, rubbing her back as she sobbed.

"Santa, I thought I'd never see you again," she said. "I was bad, Santa, very bad," she pushed back and rubbed her stomach, "and now, I have this to deal with. My parents threw me out of the house five days ago because of this, and I've been trying to get here to Middleton where my sister and her husband live, hitchhiking and begging for food, but the last truck driver wanted more than I was willing to pay, and he threw me out down the street and drove away."

"Child, where is your coat?" Ron asked, and Kim could tell that Ron's heat was breaking, as well.

"He kept my suitcase and what little money I had," she started to cry once again. "I begged him to at least let me have my coat, and he laughed at me. I asked him to at least give me my Brittina doll." She stopped for a moment and looked into Ron's eyes, "and he opened up my suitcase, pulled it out, and," she stared at Santa, "and he broke Brittina in half!" She fell into Ron, sobbing even harder, and Ron held her.

"Santa, I tried to keep going, but it was sooo cold, and I didn't have my sister's address anymore: it was in my suitcase, and I saw the light on here, and I just wanted a place to get warm until morning…" her voice trailed off to sniffles, interspersed with occasional sobs.

Kim could see the blue start to form in Ron's eyes when he looked at her, and she shook her head 'no'. She pulled down a platter and made four Nacos, then pulled down two cups and filled one with lemonade and the other with diet cola. Kim nodded toward their old booth, and Ron guided the young girl to the bench and sat down next to her. Kim came over with the tray, filled with food and drinks, and placed it on the table. She took two of the Nacos off the tray and placed them in front of the girl, and she put the other two in front of Ron. She left the drink on the tray.

Ron looked up and smiled, and the girl sniffed and lifted her face with a huge smile.

"Is that…a Naco?" she was drooling, and Ron nodded.

"It's yours, child; as many as you want," and the girl grabbed the closest Naco to her and began to devour it.

--

Wade and Mandy laughed, and Joss grinned knowingly as the monitor snapped on to reveal a smiling Woodrow, sitting in his study once again, wearing his smoking jacket and holding a snifter, once again.

"Hey, Boss, Mandy. Jocelyn, love: looking as beautiful as ever," Woodrow smiled, and Joss blushed.

"Woodrow, what have you and Gillian been up to?" Wade asked.

"Oh, not much," he held up his hand and waved a wedding band at the camera. "Do you know how hard it is to find a virtual minister or Justice of the Peace on Christmas Eve night, your time?" he complained, and Mandy laughed.

"We went to Vegas, and we found Jilly, from Jersey," Woodrow smiled. "It seems that he'd started a church out there, worshipping hoagies of all things, and he married us in the 'Holy Chapel of Hoagies'" Woodrow laughed.

"I made sure he was licensed before we agreed to use him," Gillian added, and Wade chuckled.

"And, Mandy, I believe this is yours," Woodrow laughed and pulled an ice-blue garter from his jacket pocket, tossing it toward the camera. "Your actual one will be delivered to you in 3…2…1…," and Mandy's doorbell rang.

"So, you beat me to the alter, Woodrow?" Wade laughed.

"Hey, Boss, I had to win once," Woodrow laughed. "And, I believe I also won on the wedding night, as well," Woodrow grinned, and a loud "ROWR!" came from off-camera.

"I wanted to kiss the bride," Wade pouted and laughed at the same time.

Joss snorted. "In your dreams, Aggie: I wanted to kiss the groom," and Woodrow fanned himself as sweat began to pour from his entire head.

"No kissie my husband, Jocelyn," Gillian said as the door opened and she entered the study. Mandy and Wade gasped as she came in, and Joss giggled.

"It seems that 'somebody' enjoyed their wedding night a bit much, huh, Gillian?" she laughed, and Gillian rubbed her swollen stomach.

"Jocelyn, you are SOOO gonna LOVE your wedding night!" Gillian was beaming, Woodrow and Mandy were laughing, and Wade was blushing.

"Hey, we didn't even get wedding pics!" Joss pouted.

"You haven't looked at your email, have you, luv?" Gillian laughed.

"Oops," Wade grinned. "I turned off the email notice," he explained to Joss. She swatted the back of his head, and Mandy laughed.

--

"Child," Ron looked into her eyes as he spoke, and the young girl looked up and smiled. "Would you be so kind and help an old man out by reminding me of your name?"

The girl laughed, and Kim wanted to cry at the beauty in her laugh. "Of course, Santa; I'm Mary Henrietta Freesteel," she said. "I wouldn't expect you to remember my name; after all," she lowered her head, "Momma told me you took my name off your list, years ago, because I was bad."

"Nonsense, Mary," Ron smiled, "No child is ever that bad."

"_I was_," she cried, shocking Ron at the volume of her outburst. "Momma told me I was bad because I didn't do everything she wanted me to do. I couldn't move that big bag of trash; it was bigger than me, and it ripped open when I pulled it. I picked up all the trash," she continued to cry, "but Momma told me I was bad, and I wouldn't get any more presents, ever again. You never came back after that happened," she looked up sadly, and Ron's heart broke again, "even though I was never, ever, bad again. Then, they found out I was like this," she touched her stomach, "and they packed my clothes, threw the suitcase out into the snow, and told me to go out with it and never come back in."

"Mrs. Claus, would you sit with Mary for a moment?" Ron asked Kim. "I need to get her gifts from my bag," he added, and Mary's look of pure joy reminded Kim of another Mary she had known, and lost, years ago.

"Certainly, my dear, darling husband," Kim smiled, and Mary giggled. "Mary, would you like another Naco, or more to drink?"

"Please, and thank you," Mary smiled, and Ron almost tripped when he heard the phrase as he walked into the back room, closed the door and started changing his shoes.

--

Kim was bringing Mary's food and drink back to the table when Ron opened the door from the back room.

"Well, it looks like I have a 'Mary bag,' after all," Ron called from the doorway and stepped out, and Kim stared in shock at the size of the bag over Ron's shoulder.

Mary clapped her hands like a girl of three rather than a mother-to-be of 16.

"Mary…such a pretty name for a beautiful young woman," Ron started as he walked up to her and placed his bag in the floor.

Mary blushed a deep red, and Kim couldn't help but giggle

"You know, there was another young woman named Mary who wasn't married when she found out she was 'with child,'" Ron continued, and Mary laughed at Ron's use of 'air quotes.' "She wasn't pregnant by her fiancée, but no one would have believed her if she had told the truth to them. She told him what happened, and he believed her. He stuck by her, and she had a baby boy, and he did pretty well for himself in the world," Ron grinned, and Kim smiled as he winked at her.

"Well, let's see what's in here…Oh, look, there are lots of wrapped presents," Ron said as he opened the bag to reveal all wrapped gifts. "And, if I'm not mistaken, the tags all say 'To Mary, from Santa,'" and Ron was assaulted by Mary, sobbing and laughing.

--

"So?" Joss asked, and Gillian grinned.

"Seven weeks, and we don't know," Gillian admitted. "We're waiting for the event to find out," she explained.

"And, let me guess: you can't get Woodrow to do anything but strut around the house like he did all the work" Joss laughed, and Gillian nodded, much to Woodrow's and Wade's dismay and Mandy's delight.

--

The store floor was now littered with wrapping paper, covered in new clothes and books, two new suitcases, a backpack, and one very happy young girl.

"There seem to be two things left in the bag," Ron smiled as he pulled out the box and handed it to Mary.

"Thank you, Santa," Mary giggled and attached the wrapping paper, revealing-

"BRITTINA!" Mary's squeal rattled the windows of the restaurant, and Kim and Ron both smiled.

"Santa, thank you," Mary got up and threw her arms around Ron's neck, kissing his face over and over again.

"Mary, you don't have to thank me," Ron was able to say when she finally released him. "Thank you, for continuing to believe in me, even when you couldn't see me.

"And, there is one last present, Mary," he pulled out a note. "I have two friends who live here and help me on occasions," Ron smiled, and Mary looked surprised. "Kim and Ron Stoppable; you may know her as Kim Possible," Ron explained, and Mary's face lit up in recognition.

"Kim and Ron? Wow, Santa, that's so cool!" she exclaimed, and Kim laughed inside.

"They will be here in a few minutes to take you wherever you need to go; I just need to tell them your sister's name."

"Her last name is Chen," Mary replied, and Kim had a funny feeling in her stomach, "and her name is Margaret Theresa; her husband is Powell," she added.

"And, their new son's name is Wade Joshua," Kim spoke with confidence, and Mary's eyes grew huge.

"That's right! I had a niece-" Mary began.

"-named Patricia, but she died before Wade was born," Kim added. "Wade Joshua was named after the young man who saved Powell and Peggy," Kim concluded, and Ron suddenly remembered the story that Wade had told him.

"Wow, Mrs. Claus, you do know everything," Mary smiled, and Kim winked at Ron when Mary bent over to pick up a piece of wrapping paper.

"Well, Mary, we have to be going, but Ron and Kim will be here in a minute or two," Ron said as he stood up, and Mary jumped to her feet and wrapped her arms around him.

"Thank you, Santa. Thank you for believing in me," Mary whispered, and it was all Ron could do not to cry.

"Remember, Mary: Santa loves you and your son; a baby does change everything, but the changes can be good," Ron whispered to Mary.

"Thank you, Santa: I'll finish school and raise my son. I won't forget you, ever!" she squeezed him so tight that Ron wondered if he could ever get away.

--

"Woodrow came in one day, and I pointed at my stomach and yelled at him:

"_WOODROW_! Look at what you did to me!" Gillian laughed, and Wade, Joss, and Mandy al joined her as they watched Woodrow laughing.

"I told her, 'I was not alone,'" Woodrow explained, and Gillian swatted him.

--

After a hug, Ron and Kim left Mary in the booth and walked into the back room.

"Ron, how are we going to-" Kim started, and Ron was now in civilian clothes.

Pointing down, he grinned. "Your turn," he laughed as he kicked the shoes off. In les than a minute, Kim was in her 'civilian clothes,' as well.

She laughed when she heard the recording Ron started of Santa's sleigh departing the rear roof of the restaurant, bells jingling, and they heard Mary yell out, "Goodbye, Santa, and thank you!" They went out the rear door of the restaurant, around the side to the front of the building, and came in the front door, trying to look surprised at the pile of paper and the young woman in the room.

"Hello," Kim said, and Mary looked up and smiled.

"Kim Possible!" she jumped up and hugged her. "I've been a big fan of yours for, like, forever," she released Kim and smiled at Ron. "And, Ron Stoppable, every young girl's dream date," she grinned and stuck out her hand. Ron smiled and opened his arms, and she accepted the invitation for the hug.

"I understand you need a bit of help," Kim grinned. "Santa told us your sister is a friend of my other best friend, Dr. Wade Load, and you're looking for her house. I've got her address, and we can go, whenever you're ready."

"KP, I'll help you load the car; I'd better stay and man the restaurant, just in case we get some more visitors," Ron reached down and picked up an empty box. "We need this?"

"No, silly," Mary laughed. "I packed everything here," and she pointed at the two suitcases and backpack. Kim picked up the suitcases and headed for the car.

After Kim left the building, Mary smiled. "Santa," Mary called to Ron quietly, but he ignored her and kept walking.

"I'd know you anywhere, 'Santa Ron,'" Mary smiled, and Ron stopped and turned back to face the young woman.

"Thank you, Ron; I always knew that Kim was a lucky woman, and now I know for sure it's true. May He bless you with the bounties of earth and the heavens," she reached out and touched hi shoulder, then turned and walked outside carrying her backpack.

Ron would have sworn he felt a tingle where she touched him...but, he chalked it up to the shoes and picked up the trash from the table and floor.

--

Mary was quiet on the way to her sister's house, and so was Kim.

Kim was thinking about the Mary she'd trained in high school, the young woman who had lost her battle with cancer. She realized that she hadn't thought about her in awhile, and she made a mental note for her and Ron to visit Mary's gravesite in the next two weeks,

Mary finally spoke when they pulled up in front of the house.

"Mrs. Claus?" Mary smiled, and Kim blushed.

"Kim, thank you," she said, leaning over and pecking Kim's cheek. "I already thanked 'Santa Ron,'" Mary giggled, "but I wanted to thank you, too, and tell you how wonderful you and Ron were to me."

"A baby changes everything, Mary, but don't let it change your faith in people," Kim smiled, and the porch light went on and the front door opened. "You'd be surprised at who you don't know who will touch your life. I didn't know Wade or Ron, and the first is my wonderful friend and the second is my husband."

"I'll follow your lead, Kim," she said as she opened the door, and Kim had a flashback at someone who once said that same phrase to her: someone she had lost, but now had found once again, as a friend she'd missed. Now, her friend had a husband of her own, she remembered with a smile.

Kim watched Peggy Chen and Mary hug each other, and Powell came to the car smiling.

"So, he's _finally_ going to get married to her?" Powell grinned, and he and Kim hugged.

"Took awhile, but yeah," Kim replied after they separated and went to the rear of the Sloth to get the suitcases. "In late June, in fact, almost to a day on their original scnedule," she added with a chuckle.

"I never expected to get a call from 'Santa Claus,'" Powell winked, and Kim smiled, "telling me my sister-in-law was in town. Thank you for doing this, Kim, and thank Ron, too."

"You're welcome, Mr. Chen, and it's 'no big,' seriously: just doing the help thing," Kim replied.

"And, at Christmas, too' he smiled, taking the bags from her, "we saw what you and Ron did in Eastern Europe, Kim; and, may I say," he grinned, "You make a wonderful Mrs. Claus…rowr," he laughed, and Kim laughed and blushed as they walked towards the sisters.

--

"I was worried about you, Gillian," Mandy finally spoke, and it was so soft that both Joss and Wade had to look up to make certain that she had, indeed, spoken. The tears she was shedding were real. "I didn't want to lose you, Gillian, and I was sure you were gone."

"Mandy, thank you for everything," Gillian smiled, and then laughed. "Well," she patted her stomach, "maybe not _everything_," she grinned

"Thank you for trusting me, for allowing me to grow, for being my friend," Gillian added, "and for knowing when to let me go."

"Did you get the package, Mandy?" Woodrow asked.

Mandy replied by sitting at her desk, putting her feet up again, and pulling up the hem of her right leg, showing off the ice-blue garter sent to her by Woodrow..

"I like this one better," Woodrow said, and he pointed at Gillian's leg and lifted the hem a bit to show the original on her leg.

Gillian blushed.

Joss laughed.

"Merry Christmas, everyone," Joss said, and she popped the cork on a bottle of sparkling grape juice she'd pulled from the refrigerator in Wade's room, pouring some into a pair of glasses. "I'd like to propose a toast to the happy couple," she said, lifting her glass. Woodrow produced a bottle of sparkling grape juice, generating a chuckle from Mandy, and Mandy lifted her glass of wine as the five glasses were lifted.

"An old friend once told me: 'Joss, life is short, and the years are long, but not as long as you have each other.' To Gillian and Woodrow: may you always have each other," Joss smiled and saluted.

"Gillian and Woodrow," came from two continents.

Gillian leaned over and kissed her husband.

"Luv," she whispered.

"Love you," he whispered back.

"Oh my gosh, girlfriend!" Joss had drained her glass and opened her email when she exclaimed, "that wedding dress is to die for!"

--

Kim opened the restaurant door and smiled: Ron had cleaned up the dining area, and he was standing behind the counter in full Santa costume.

"Mary ok?" he asked, and Kim nodded.

"Good; I wanted to go out and find that driver, but I decided not to," Ron hopped the counter and stepped up to his wife. "Merry Christmas, KP," Ron whispered, and he took her in his arms and kissed her.

"Merry Christmas, Ron," she smiled, and she felt cooler for a moment. She looked down, and she was now dressed in her 'Mrs. Claus' costume.

She grinned. "Bad Ron," she laughed, and Ron smiled.

"Like you: I'm full of surprises, my darling wife," he grinned, and Ron pointed to the clock over the drive-through window:

3:10 AM.

--

Story complete

--

**_Author's afterward:_**

Thomas Linquist, Kwebs, CajunBear73, Sentinel103, Slyrr, whitem (and, thank you, sir, for even mentioning Dr. Asimov's name in a review of one of my stories). Captain IT, Silvermist, Lady Rhetorica (if Woodrow and Gillian seem normal, it's because they are…and, they aren't, at the same time…and, they know it; additionally, Star_Eva01 and I spent long hours discussing the 'presentation' of Gillian to Woodrow, and a good section of chapter 2 is a response to that question: Gillian and Amanda discussed this opportunity, and Gillian made the decision on her own) all have provided reviews to this tale and discussed interesting concepts.

Thank yous I owe for this tale:

For Amanda Cherry Tartenware and Gillian: Absentialuci. I hope I captured the 'essence' accurately, dear lady.

For concepts: Neo the Saiyan Angel, Silvermist, Anabri, kt, ja, Star_Eva01, and kwebs.

For beta assistance and support in my quest to produce the best 'possible' work: ja, kt, and Star_Eva01.

For the 'Mary' that Kim lost, long ago: kt, in her wonderful story "Mom, Me, and Mary." kt, I told you that I would bring Mary back in the JadeKimVerse, and this won't be the only reference to this wonderful young woman, gone fat too early.

For the basic concept of this story: Star_Eva01. It happened during the discussion of one of his early chapters of his tale "Joss' Ride". This tale takes place before the opening and closing chapters of his story but after the remainder of it.

Should we accept AIs in our world as we expect them to accept us in theirs? We had better be ready and able to….

Thanks for reading, and please review.

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